


Don't You Hear Me Howling, Babe?

by SunshineOnACloudyDay



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Animal Transformation, But She's Horny AF, Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Happy Ending, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Light Angst, Pining, Possessive Felix Hugo Fraldarius, Post-Timeskip | War Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Soft Felix Hugo Fraldarius, Top Byleth is LIFE, byleth is bad at feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:34:48
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 25,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26676763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SunshineOnACloudyDay/pseuds/SunshineOnACloudyDay
Summary: Felix makes some rash decisions in the pursuit of becoming faster and stronger. It's what he needs in order to get the upper hand over the Professor, who he may or may not have feelings for. The spell has some... unexpected effects. Byleth has to deal with the needy consequences.Title inspired by "It Will Come Back" by Hozier.
Relationships: Felix Hugo Fraldarius/My Unit | Byleth
Comments: 8
Kudos: 87





	1. Hot for the Professor? No... of course not. Oh, wait.

**Author's Note:**

> I took MANY creative liberties with this, guys. This is purely self-indulgent. Hope you enjoy. 
> 
> I always appreciate kudos and comments. It keeps the creative juices flowing.

He was sparring with the Professor when a haughty voice called from the shadows, “Hello, Felix! Professor! How are you two doing on this fine day?”

The Professor straightened and dropped her sword arm back to her side, much to his chagrin. For the most part, people knew not to interrupt his sparring time with the Professor. His sharp tongue usually kept people at bay, but it seemed that didn’t apply to Miss I Think I’m Greater Than Everyone Until You Put Me In Direct Sunlight. 

The Professor’s face was in its usual neutral expression as she greeted, “Hello, Constance. Did you need something?”

“It is not I, but _you_ who needs something, Professor! For you see, I have finally done it.”

He could feel a monologue coming on, and he really wanted to get back to their spar. Felix rolled his eyes and gritted out, “Just tell us what you think you did so we can get back to sparring.”

“Perhaps you will be more excited about my magnificent achievement than most, Felix Fraldarius.” Constance laughed in that annoyingly haughty way that always drove him up a wall, but Byleth moved closer to where she was standing in the shadows.

She calmly asked, “Is this about that spell you’ve been working on? The one I helped you obtain all of the supplies for?”

“Indeed it is, Professor! You see, I’ve been formulating a spell that we can use to win this dreadful war. It increases the strength and speed of those it is cast upon. Imagine having the ability to make your soldiers stronger and faster, without the need for long hours of training!” Another haughty laugh rang through the air. “Aren’t I magnificent?”

Now she had his attention. “Strength and speed? Really?”

“Why yes! I would not exaggerate my achievements in such a way to mislead you. It should make the subject stronger and faster, making victory over the Empire that much easier to grasp.” The blonde turned toward the Professor and said, “I came here because I will be needing my test subject now, and you have so graciously volunteered.”

“Volunteered is… not the quite the word I would use,” the Professor somewhat hesitantly replied.

He brusquely said, “Wait. The Professor is already stronger and faster than everyone. Why would you test it on her?”

Constance clasped her hands in front of her chest and looked at him like she was the cat and she just caught him… the canary. “I presume this means you wish to become the first recipient of this glorious spellwork?”

He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at her, trying his best to be intimidating, which normally worked for him. “I’m always looking to be stronger and faster. Normally I train, but if you’ve come up with a spell…”

“Felix,” the Professor lightly grabbed his arm and moved really close to him as she whispered, “I’m not sure this is the best idea.” 

Her proximate to him was making his chest feel tight, and he felt warmer all of the sudden. This had been happening to him more and more as of late, and it was becoming rather distracting. His mouth became really dry, and he licked his lips before turning to Constance and breathily asking, “It’s safe, right?”

The blonde mage laughed heartily as she put a hand over her heart like she was swearing an oath of some sort. “Of course, it is safe! It shall not kill you, or hurt you in any way! I presume…” the flicker of doubt in her eyes was not comforting, “but that is why we must test such things.”

The possibility that it could work was too tantalizing to pass up. Extra strength and speed could be just what he needed in order to finally notch a win again the Professor. Maybe he could finally be good enough to make her taste defeat. “Fine. Do it, then.”

The Professor quietly whispered, “Felix…”

He moved away from her as he snapped, “Oh, stop nagging. I’ll be fine.” 

The Professor was never the most expressive person, so when she frowned and looked outwardly worried, that really should have been his first clue that what he was doing was utterly foolish. Constance had him step into the middle of the floor as the Professor moved to stand behind her. A golden spell sigil with Contance’s Crest in the center appeared in front of the mage as she murmured things under her breath. “Alright, Felix. Are you ready to become the ultimate fighter? Are you ready to--”

He rolled his eyes and interrupted, “Just do it already.”

“Oh, ho ho! So eager!” Golden light appeared as she circled her arms, and the spell sigil disappeared as she pushed the light forward and into him. He flinched slightly as it seeped into his body, not quite knowing what to expect. Warmth spread through him for the slightest moment, almost feeling like a weak heal spell, but the warmth died quickly. After a moment he realized that nothing else was happening.

“Is that it?” He lifted a hand to his forehead and shook his head. “I don’t feel any different.”

The Professor tilted her head in that cute way she does when she’s curious or confused about something. _No. Not cute. Stop that._ “We could spar again? Maybe then we’ll see if there were any changes?”

“Yes, take out your sword.” Felix couldn’t help the barest hint of a smile that pulled at the side of his lips. The Professor was the perfect sparring partner. She always challenged him, always led them with skill and precision, and she always provided for those she cared about. He could think of no better partner. Wait… partner? Sparring partner. He liked trying to hit her with his sword. The training one. 

He was distracted from that weird train of thought when she charged toward him with a battle cry that sent a chill down his spine. Their blades clashed, and he parried each of her blows with ease. The determination in her eyes as she watched each of his movements was invigorating. It sent a fire through his veins, and soon he felt a pleasant heat over every nerve of his body. Perhaps it was the spell finally working? Was he stronger? Was he faster?

He lunged in an attempt to slash her shoulder with the wooden blade, but she spun out of the way, her hair a mint green halo around her head. She dropped to the ground as she tried to kick out his feet, but he easily jumped back to avoid the sweep of her leg. Perhaps the spell really had worked. He felt good. He felt strong. He felt like, perhaps, today could be the day that he finally beat the Professor.

He saw his opportunity. Her swing was a bit too wide, leaving an opening that he quickly used to his advantage. He struck her side, and when she faltered, knocked the sword from her hand. It was not unusual for them to treat a spar like a battle, and if one of them was disarmed but had not yielded, they would often use hand to hand techniques until the other would yield. Such was the case when the Professor barreled toward him and tackled him to the ground. 

As his back hit the dirt, his grip on his sword became loose. Or maybe it was the fact that the heat in his veins was a bit too pleasant to focus on some dumb wooden sword in his hand. The Professor pinned his forearm with her knee and growled, “Yield?”

The heat in his veins seemed to pulse as he bucked his hips up, sending her over his head and onto her back in a roll. He somersaulted backwards until he was the sprawled on top of her, pinning her arms above her head. He bared his teeth and growled, “I don’t know… do you?” 

She struggled underneath him, moving her hips as she tried to see if she could do anything to get out of his hold. If she kept squirming like this, he was going to have a different issue on his hands. Already he could feel heat coiling in the pit of his stomach, and he bit the inside of his cheek in an effort to force it away. 

Then, something weird happened. She shook her head from side to side and suddenly he smelled… something. _What IS that smell?_ It was intoxicating, making his brain hum pleasantly as he leaned forward to…

“Umm... What are you doing?” The Professor’s wide green eyes as she stammered out her question snapped him back into the present.

He snapped his head back. “Do you yield?” He said it sharper than he truly intended, but the heat in his veins was rapidly morphing from pleasant to unpleasant, and he suddenly wanted to run and hide.

“Yes. You’ve finally won, Fraldarius. Congratulations.” She smiled, that ever elusive smile, and the heat suddenly became unbearable. A small whine escaped him, and he scrambled off of her as he threw a hand over his mouth. Her smile dropped as her eyebrows knit in concern. “Felix? Are you alright?” Another whine left his throat unintentionally, and the heat in his body became concentrated on his cheeks in what was probably an embarrassing blush. 

Clapping echoed from the shadows as Constance laughed jubilantly. “Success! Surely this shall be the very feat that helps me to restore House Nuvelle to it’s former glory. I have made Felix Fraldarius stronger and faster, to the point that he was able to secure victory over the Professor herself!” 

The Professor obviously wasn’t listening to her, she was too busy intently staring at him. She stepped closer to him, that same look of quiet concern on her face, and the smell from before filled his nostrils. His brain began to hum again, but he shook it away and gritted out, “I have to go.”

She stepped even closer, and placed a hand on his forehead. Again that small whine escaped him, and he bit his tongue in an effort to make the damned noise stop. “Are you sure you’re alright? You feel rather warm, and your face is flushed. Are you in pain?”

He barked, “I’m fine!” He then turned on his heel and ran out the door, racing to the bath house, in desperate need of a cold bath.

He walked into the changing room and was immediately assaulted by all of the smells around him. Sweat, soap, water, all of the smells were almost distracting as he stripped off his clothes, wrapped a towel around himself, and walked into the communal bath area. 

“Felix! How’s it going?” Sylvain waved from where he was bathing and sent him a friendly smile, but something about it had him on edge. And where was that intoxicating smell from before? He couldn’t smell it anymore, and suddenly that was all he wanted. 

He shook the weird feeling away and gritted out, “Sylvain.”

“How was your date with the Professor?” Sylvain wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. _Not this again…_

“I’ve told you, Sylvain,” he droned with as much projected disinterest as possible, “We meet to spar. It’s not a date.”

“You’re the only person who has a weekly time set up to spar individually,” Sylvain teased, “it might as well be a date.” When he didn’t rise to the bait, Sylvain sighed and switch tracks. “How was your spar, then?”

He nonchalantly said, “I beat her for the first time today.”

“Wait… what?!” Sylvain sat up straight as a goofy smile split his features. “Dude, that’s amazing! Congratulations! I bet you’re over the moon right now!”

“I don’t know,” he admitted as he hung up his towel and moved into the bathing pool, “I feel kind of weird, actually.” He had expected this moment to feel more monumental somehow, but all his brain could focus on was that smell and the warmth of her under him as she smiled. 

Sylvain furrowed his eyebrows and asked, “What kind of weird?”

“Well, Constance used some sort of spell on me. She said it would make me stronger and faster, which I suppose it did, considering I finally notched a win against the Professor. But now I feel… weirdly warm and everything smells weird.” He lifted his bar of soap to his nose and quickly moved it away, repelled by the smell.

“That’s… weird.” Genuine concern filtered into the redhead’s tone as he asked, “Are you okay? Should we get you to Manuela?” 

Felix shook his head. “No. I don’t feel sick or anything. Maybe it’s just some weird side effect from the spell? Maybe it makes you stronger, faster, and gives you a better sense of smell?”

“I don’t know.” Sylvain’s eyebrows were still furrowed as he watched Felix warily. “Constance’s experiments sometimes have weird effects. Remember that one time it made Balthus’ hair turn green? Or when Hapi sprouted a tail?” His eyes trailed down Felix’s body, as if checking to see if he had any extra appendages.

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

Sylvain sighed and seemed to relax. “You’re probably right. Hey, want to get dinner with me?”

He scoffed and crossed his arms. “I don’t feel like picking up girls, Sylvain.”

“I know,” Sylvain cooed, “you’ve only got eyes for the Professor.” A small whine escaped him again, and he clamped his hands over his mouth. Sylvain’s eyes widened as he scooted closer. “Hey… are you okay?”

“I’m fine!” It was muffled behind his hands as he shook his head. “Maybe I just need food or something.”

“Are you sure?” Sylvain hovered near him as he looked him over carefully. “You just… whined?”

“Just forget it,” he snapped as he angrily dropped his hands back to his sides, “Are we getting food or what?”

“Okay okay! Geesh!” Sylvain put his hands up in mock surrender, and something about it was weirdly… fulfilling. A sense of pride washed over him, but he couldn’t explain why.

They walked to the dining hall as Sylvain droned on and on about his latest escapade. Felix didn’t even pretend to listen, but that didn’t seem to bother Sylvain at all. They both ordered the Roast Pheasant and moved to a table in the corner. Felix was feeling ravenous all of the sudden, and he quickly dug into his meal. However, he stopped when he caught a faint whiff of that smell that he’d been missing. He lifted his head, scanning the area as he tried to find out where it was coming from. His eyes met pale green ones, and the Professor quickly approached them with her tray of food.

She stood to the side and asked, “Do you mind if I join you?”

“Of course, Professor! We would be blessed to dine with someone as radiant as yourself this evening.” Sylvain winked, and Felix growled, curling his lip as he kicked him under the table. “Ow! What the hell, man?!” 

He growled, “Leave her alone.”

The smell from earlier washed over him in a blessed wave as the Professor sat down beside him and flicked her hair behind her shoulders. She chided, “I’m alright, Felix. There’s no need to get physical.”

“There is when Sylvain is being an idiot.” He narrowed his eyes at the redhead, who looked at him quizzically.

“Alright, alright. Best behavior.” Sylvain put his hands up in mock surrender again, and that same weird sense of pride washed over him. Maybe it was that sense of pride that gave him the confidence to spread his legs the slightest bit, just until his leg was lightly touching the Professor’s under the table. Her lips twitched up in a small smile, not as wide as the one she’d graced him with in the training grounds, but still enough to make his heartbeat sound in his ears. That intoxicating smell washed over him again as the Professor reached up to touched his forehead again. He bit his tongue in preparation, and managed to suppress the little whine that threatened to slip out at her touch. Why didn’t they touch more often? He could see himself enjoying that.

“Are you feeling any better, Felix? Any weird side effects from earlier?”

He breathed, “No.” His whole concentration was on the point where the Professor’s skin was touching his and that smell that he wanted to nuzzle against. If he could just get closer, maybe he could…

“Felix?” The Professor’s voice pulled him back to reality again, and he blinked a few times as he tried to focus. His face was really close to hers, and she had a weird look in her eyes as she asked, “Did you hear what I just said?” There was that cute head tilt again. The pleasant heat was back and he hummed softly as he shook his head no.

“Hey.” Her tone was sharper now, more commanding. “Come with me.” She stood, and he felt the overwhelming urge to… bow? He shook it away when he felt something tap against his foot. He glanced over at Sylvain, who stood and walked over toward the Professor. Felix felt his lip curl again as he quickly stood and wormed between them.

He turned to the Professor and asked, “Where are we going?” 

“We are going to see Manuela.”

What? No. He didn’t want to see Manuela. He felt good for the first time in a long time. The heat pleasantly humming in the corners of his mind, intensifying as he got into closer proximate with the Professor. “Why? I feel fine.”

Sylvain’s eyebrows were furrowed and his tone held genuine concern again as he softly said, “Dude… you just spaced out for a solid minute.”

“I’m just tired.” Felix shook his head and rolled his shoulders, even making a show of fake yawning. “It’s been a long day.” He really wasn’t all that tired, but the excuse seemed to get them off his back, so he sat down and quickly finished his food before going back to his room.

He slowly changed into his night clothes and tidied his room, hoping that it would help him feel more tired. When that didn’t work, he went through and polished all of his weapons and armor. By the time he was finished, the moon was high in the sky, and he had never felt more awake. He groaned in frustration and threw on his boots, figuring that a walk might help.

He walked out into the night air, and instantly felt better. He wandered toward the fishing pond, and sat on the edge of the dock for a while, but quickly became bored. He stood and made his way towards the training grounds, thinking that some additional training might help him. His session earlier had been cut short by Constance and her spell, so he hadn’t had nearly as much time with the Professor as he would have liked. 

He was walking past her room when he caught a whiff of that smell again. Again the small whine sound happened as he walked up the stairs and moved to stand in front of her door. He could just barely smell it, but it was enough to bring back that pleasant heat, so he sat down against the door. He rested his head against it and looked up at the already lightening sky. He hadn’t realized that he had been up so late, it was only a few hours before dawn at this point. His eyes slowly closed and he drifted off to sleep.

He woke with a start as the door he was leaning on opened and he tumbled backwards, his head landing near the Professor’s feet. “Felix?” Her head tilt was even cuter from this angle. “Felix!” Her eyes widened as she knelt down beside him, bringing that heavenly smell with her. “What happened?”

He groggily said, “What?” He was still waking up, and that warmth was so pleasant that he wondered if maybe he was dreaming.

A thought that gained more credibility as she reached her hand out and rubbed along the top of his head in a way that felt really REALLY good. But then she pinched something between her fingers and he yelped as he batted her hand away. She pursed her lips in a thin line before quietly saying, “Felix… you have… ears.” 

He scoffed and shook his head, still lying on the floor looking up at her. He whispered like it was a secret only they shared, “Professor… you also have ears.”

She huffed a heavy breath through her nose and stood to walk back into her room. He pushed himself to sitting and was about to stand when the Professor pressed a small mirror into his hand. He raised an eyebrow in confusion, but she only nodded to the mirror. He lifted it, and didn’t understand what she was getting at, at first. Sure he looked a bit tired, but it was his same face, and hair, and… EARS?! As he looked at them, they twitched and he dropped the mirror as he immediately lifted his hands to the feel the furry ears that were definitely attached to his body. 

“Shit! I’m going to KILL Constance.”

The Professor hummed softly. “I told you it wasn’t a good idea.”

If she were anyone else he’d chew her out for being a smartass. As things were now, he’d give her a pass. Instead he groaned and put his hands over his face as he grumbled, “What am I supposed to do now?!”

“Come on,” she held out a hand to help him up, “let’s head to Abyss and see what Constance says.”

He took it and when he was standing asked, “Do you think she can fix it?” The Professor’s eyes were still fixed to a point just above his head with a look he couldn’t quite decipher.

The Professor shrugged easily in that emotionless way she sometimes does and walked out the door. “Who knows? At least it’s not that bad.”

He ran after her and called, “Not that bad?! I have furry ears!”

She unexpectedly laughed and it was almost breathtaking. She teased, “I think they are kinda cute.”

He flustered, “What?!”

“Oh, you are no fun, Fraldarius.” The Professor shook her head with a smirk. Was she being… flirty? Playful? That sounded like something Sylvain would say to a girl. Was she being that way… with him? Could that be even remotely possible? 

He convinced himself that it was just in his head and growled, “Professor…”

“You keep calling me that, but I’m not longer your teacher. You could call me by my name?” Bright green eyes flicked to his and he quickly looked away.

“Byleth…” It felt foreign on his tongue, but in his peripherals he saw the way it made her smile, and if she was going to smile every time he said it he would definitely be using it more often. 

If he wasn’t speaking to the Ashen Demon, he would say she was almost being coy as she asked, “Yes?”

He tried to sound brusque and commanding, but really it came out almost desperate as he basically whined, “Please refrain from saying that my current crisis is CUTE.”

She lightly shook her head, her features shifting back to their usual neutrality. “I make no promises.”

He cursed as a sharp pain erupted from the bottom of his spine. He stumbled, and the Professor easily caught him before he reached the ground. He had to grit his teeth to keep from crying out. It felt like someone took a red hot fire poker and dragged it down the base of his spine. And as if the pain wasn’t enough, he became even more alarmed when after several moments of agony she whispered, “Oh shit…” 

“What?” he panted, as he tried to catch his breath. The pain had subsided, but Byleth was looking at him with wide eyes.

“You… umm…” she shook her head and lowered her hand until she dragged something between them. 

His brain short circuited as he stared at the fluffy object that Byleth was holding in her hand in the space between them. It was the same dark raven color as his hair and the ears that had sprouted from his head. His voice reached a pitch higher than he’d heard from himself in a long time as he screeched, “A tail?!” He growled and his voice became much deeper as he dangerously said, “I’m going to KILL CONSTANCE!”

She tugged on the tail, softly, and he yelped as he moved closer to her, only to realize that he was basically embracing her. A whiff of that smell was making it hard to think again. It was just so… calming. After the many shocks of this morning, her warmth in his arms was so relieving. He nuzzled into the side of the Professor’s neck and took a deep breath. She shivered slightly and released his tail as she took a hesitant step back, still supporting a bit of his weight in her arms. 

Those beautiful green eyes stared into his as her eyebrows furrowed. Her voice was soft and hesitant as she asked, “Ummm… are you alright?”

“Hmmm…” he lifted his eyebrows and blinked a few times. There was a pleasant hum in his brain, and the weight of her arms felt really nice. Don’t even get him started on that SMELL. Goddess… if he could just… 

“Let’s get you to Constance.” Byleth left one of her arms wrapped around his waist as she half dragged him through the tunnels until they reached the girls’ room. He got some weird looks from some of the people that spotted them, but he could hardly care when the Professor was pressed against his side like this and everything felt nice and warm. 

She pounded on the door unceremoniously and called, “Constance! Wake up!”

He could hear grumbling from the other side of the door before it opened and he was greeted by the lovely sight of Constance with curlers in her hair. Her eyes widened as they landed on him, flicking up to his ears, and then down to his tail. She mumbled, “Oh my…”

The Professor’s tone was urgent as she said, “Can you fix it? He woke up with the ears, but the tail just happened a few minutes ago. I think it’s getting worse.” That snapped him out of the warm and fuzzy for a moment. _Oh shit. I hadn’t even thought of that._ Byleth’s hand shifted against his side and when she glanced over at him that smell brought the warm and fuzzy feeling back.

“Oh dear…” Constance put a hand over her mouth as her eyes went wide. “Give me just a moment.” She backed into the room and slammed the door shut. As soon as she was gone, he leaned a little into the Professor. _Byleth._ His mind was becoming more and more enveloped in that pleasant hum.

She whispered, “Can I… ask you something?” He hummed in approval as he lazily nodded his head. He’d answer anything she wanted if she kept speaking like that. “Why did you sleep in front of my door?”

He breathed, “You smell good.” He leaned his head toward her throat again, nuzzling it softly as he took a deep breath in through his nose.

She squeaked, “Smell good?” He hummed in approval as he shifted so more of his body pressed against hers. She took a few steps back, planting her back against the wall, and he took the opportunity to comb his hands through her hair before licking up the side of her neck. She whined softly, and he nipped at the skin as he growled low in his throat. “Felix… we shouldn’t…” she cut off with a moan as he nipped at the flesh of her ear and pressed his body against hers. 

“Well, this is some kinky stuff! Go, Professor! Get some!” A low voice sounded behind him, and he growled low in his throat as he pushed his body more against his future mate’s and turned to glare at the male approaching them. “Woah there, buddy.” The large male raised his hands in surrender, making him relax slightly as he shifted against his future mate, still pressing but not wanting to harm. She was going to be his, no one else’s. “I’m not gonna get in your way or anything. To each there own.”

He grabbed his future mate’s hand, _Byleth_ , and pulled her away. She resisted and he whined softly, moving to nuzzle against her throat again. She relaxed, and he licked along her neck, thrilling at the small whine she made in return. She was going to be his. His mate. No one else’s. “Felix…” He whined softly again, rubbing his nose against hers in reply. He could feel her breath against his face as she said, “We should wait for Constance.”

He didn’t want anyone else. He only wanted his mate. His Byleth. He could hear more low voices around the corner. Someone would come and try to take his mate. She was the strongest, the fastest, and the kindest. They would all want her to be theirs, they would be foolish not to, but he couldn’t let anyone take her from him. He moved to nuzzle her again, to tell her that he wanted her to be his, but pain suddenly overtook him. A strangled yelp sounded out as he fell against her. “Felix?!” His Byleth. No one else could have his mate… But the pain was blinding and he couldn’t seem to stand any longer. “FELIX!”

He fell to the ground, and his mate knelt beside him. He could smell her, but he couldn’t see her anymore. Everything was just pain, so much pain. Until suddenly, the pain wasn’t there anymore.


	2. You're More Than I Bargained For, Baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byleth is horny AF, and then the worst happens. As she waits for Felix to turn back to normal, she slowly realizes that her feelings for Felix might not be as simple as she thought they were.

Let it be known that Byleth didn’t fear much. The small list included things like: terribly awkward teatimes where she never said the right thing, the thought of having to lead prayers like Seteth was often begging her to, losing one of her students, killing one of her former students, and… wow that list got dark fast. 

Anyway. One of her biggest fears, is having to talk about her newly awakened _feelings_. They didn't make any sense to her, so she avoided them as much as she possibly could. They are troublesome at best, and terrifying at their worst. Finding Felix sleeping at her door caused a sense of nervousness that she wasn’t sure she had ever experienced. Finding that he had ears like some sort of dog? Kick that nervousness up ten notches and you have where she is right about now.

She wanted to know why he’d been acting so strangely around her yesterday, but the thought of asking always made it feel like something was fluttering in her stomach. But Byleth was no coward. If she could charge in alone and take out a battalion of enemy soldiers, she could definitely ask a simple question. Probably.

She finally worked up the nerve and said, “Can I… ask you something?” Felix hummed softly in approval, but there was something off about him right now, almost like he wasn’t completely there anymore. His eyes were hazy and his nod lazy. Still, she pressed on, commanding the fluttering in her stomach to fuck off. “Why did you sleep in front of my door?”

His voice was a low and breathy whisper, “You smell good.” He shifted his head until his nose was pressed against her neck and took a deep breath. This was the touchiest she had ever seen the swordsman, and she was already concerned for his welfare after the… well… tail… but now he didn’t even seem like himself. She couldn’t help the shiver down her spine as she felt his warm breath against her neck. The fluttering may have momentarily ceased, but now it was back full force and she could feel heat rushing to her cheeks.

Her voice squeaked as she said, “Smell good?” Goddess… if he was himself right now, he’d probably be disgusted with her. But instead, it seemed to have the opposite effect. He pressed the weight of his body against hers, and she stumbled backward in surprise until her back hit the wall. He immediately took up the space right in front of her, his hands moved to her hair, gently combing through as he… Oh goddess.

The smallest whine escaped her as Felix leaned against her and licked up her neck. In response, he grinded against her as he nipped at her throat and growled lowly. It was like something out of her one of her daydreams she sometimes fell prey to. How many times had she wanted to press the sharp-tongued swordsman against the wall and kiss him until he was a beautiful wreck since she’d woken up from her little five-year nap? Too many times to be strictly appropriate, that’s for sure. She knew she should put a stop to this. Hold him off, pin him down, make him beg for her. Wait. No. Getting off track.

He wasn’t even himself… so this was wrong. But it all felt so damn GOOD.

“Felix… we shouldn’t…” she cut off with a moan as he tugged at her hair and nipped at the flesh of her ear, still grinding against her. Her whole body felt hot, and she desperately wanted to reciprocate, but she was still concerned. Something was obviously wrong.

“Well, this is some kinky stuff. Go Professor! Get some!” Balthus’ voice echoed from further down the tunnel, startling her. Oh yeah, they were still in a very public place. She had nearly forgotten. Heat rushed to her cheeks as the brawler looked them over with obvious amusement. Odd that he wasn’t commenting about the ears and the tail… though maybe that was implied with the “kinky” comment. That was something some people were into… right? She’d often seen the costumes in shops that she used to go to when buying the herbs she needed after a one night stand.

Felix growled menacingly as he pushed his body against her. He then turned his head to glare at Balthus. “Woah there, buddy.” Balthus raised his hands in mock surrender, and Felix seemed to relax somewhat and moved so he wasn’t crushing her anymore, not that she particularly minded. Balthus teased, “I’m not gonna get in your way or anything. To each there own.”

Her tone held a level of calmness she didn’t feel as she explained, “Constance did some sort of spell and now he’s like this. I don’t think he knows what is happening.” Balthus being there was probably a good thing. She didn’t know how much longer she was going to be able to keep her head.

Felix grabbed her hand and tried to pull her away, but she held firm. They just needed to wait for Constance, and hopefully she could fix this. Then she’d throw him over her shoulder and wreck him properly somewhere more private. But Felix did that little whine thing and nuzzled against her throat again. She lost an ounce of the little control she still had and melted against him, relaxing slightly in his hold, until the sucker licked along the column of her throat again. She couldn’t help the small whine that came out as she tilted her head back giving him more access, her eyes rolling back into her head at the sensation. Damn. How long had she been this horny? 

Her voice was almost breathless now, “Felix…” He whined again and moved to nuzzle his nose against hers in a way that was so intimate it left her feeling a little out of her depth. His amber eyes were almost completely swallowed by his pupils, and she took a deep steadying breath before saying, “We should wait for Constance.”

He tensed, trying again to pull her down the hallway, further into the tunnels of Abyss. He made a whine that was more frantic than the others as his eyes darted around. When she still refused to budge, he moved closer to her neck, then suddenly went rigid. His let out a strangled yelp like he was in pain as he fell against her. She caught him in her arms, trying to get hazy amber eyes to look at her, but he couldn't seem to and he became dead weight against her. She exclaimed, “Felix?!” 

“Woah… you okay there, buddy?” Balthus was at her side in an instant and tried to help, but he didn’t get there in time. 

She tried to control it enough that Felix wouldn’t injure himself as he fell to the ground. She shouted his name at the top of her lungs as she dropped down beside him. Constance ran out the door, notebooks piled in her arms, but she immediately dropped them to the ground with the scattering of loose parchment on stone at the sight of Felix writhing on the ground. 

Byleth's eyes blew wide with a mixture of fear and awe. Dark fur started growing from his skin as his body twitched and writhed. A snout morphed his face as sharp teeth lined his jaw. His night clothes ripped as he grew larger and larger. His arms and legs shifted in shape and grew dark fur. His boots ripped as his feet turned into paws with sharp claws. After a few terrible moments that would haunt her for a long time to come, Felix had turned into a rather large raven-colored wolf. 

He suddenly stopped moving, and she panicked. Okay, maybe she was afraid of more things than she thought. She put her hand on his ribs and frantically said, “Felix? Felix, please? Are you okay?” Balthus and Constance started to back up, and Balthus grabbed her upper arm to pull her away, but she ripped it out of his grip. She desperately shouted, “Felix! Wake up!” A lump formed in her throat. He couldn’t be gone. He couldn’t be a wolf. She couldn’t kill him, she couldn’t let anyone else kill him. She never should have allowed Constance to do that stupid spell! What was she thinking?!

Amber eyes opened, and the wolf’s lip curled to show its massive teeth. There was a raven blur, and in the next moment she was flat on her back with the wolf on top of her, nuzzling a cold wet nose into her neck like Felix had been earlier. She could sense the sigils forming in the air and she shouted, “Stop! He’s not hurting me!” She was completely covered by the wolf so they probably couldn’t even see her.

He seemed to realize that others were there and he lifted his head as he crouched low over her, growling and snapping his teeth at the others as if he were guarding her. She called, “Back up! Give him space!”

Constance nervously called, “Professor…”

“No! Don’t hurt him! He’s not attacking, so don’t do anything.” The wolf was still tensed over her, his teeth bared and his tail high in the air as he swiveled his head between Balthus and Constance. “I think he thinks he’s guarding me. No magic, just act like he’s a normal wolf.”

Balthus unhelpfully replied, “I’d kill a normal wolf, pal.”

The sound of Balthus’ voice made the wolf crouch lower until he was almost crushing her. The growl that came from his throat was threatening. She remembered her father teaching her a little about wolves when they had gone to Faerghus on a job during the Red Wolf Moon one year. Mostly it had been about how best to kill them, but she remembered that they moved in packs and that the leaders were sometimes called alphas. They were usually the biggest threat, because they were the protectors of the group. 

If Felix thought he was an alpha, which that ornery asshole WOULD, he’d be threatened by others not being submissive, especially males. At least that’s what she thought her father said, but really it was years ago and this had been a weird morning, so what did she know? “Just back away slowly, while bowing slightly. It’s a power play. Something about alphas or something. Just do it!” 

She couldn’t see them, but she could hear the shuffle of feet as the wolf slowly became more and more relaxed. “Felix?” She softly said his name and the wolf’s large head swiveled down to look at her with familiar amber eyes. A soft whine sounded from his throat before he licked her cheek, his rough tongue leaving a disgusting trail of saliva in its wake.

Balthus chuckled incredulously and murmured, “Holy shit.”

Felix tensed again, dropping low over her as he growled in warning. “Okay... Balthus, you’ve gotta go. Constance, try talking.” 

In a quivering voice she said, “Ummm… what should I say?” Constance’s voice didn’t get any special reaction, and Felix’s eyes looked like they were still trained on Balthus.

She barked the command as if they were on a battlefield, rather than the tunnels of his home. “Balthus, get Manuela and Lysinthea and bring them down here NOW. Don’t tell anyone what you saw, or I’ll kick your ass into next week. Got it?” 

“Yes, ma’am.” He complied immediately, just as he would to any of her other commands. The brawler was strong and cocky-- he nicknamed himself the King of Grappling for Sothis’ sake-- but he had a healthy dose of fear when it came to her. It worked in her favor today as she could hear shuffling footsteps fade into the background. When the footsteps were gone, the wolf eased down toward her and licked her again before he nuzzled into her chest. 

“Constance,” her tone was as sharp as her sword, more threatening than it probably should be, but she figured she had a pass, what with the fact that a giant wolf that used to be the man she was attracted to was currently whining as he rubbed his snout against her. “Tell me you know how to fix this!”

She couldn’t see the young mage, but her voice brought to mind how she acted in the sun, which was not a good sign. She stammered, “I… Umm… I…” 

The wolf was still on top of her, and she was rapidly losing patience. In a tone that was almost a growl, she pressed, “Constance!” 

The mages words slipped from her lips in a nervous stream, “I shall figure it out, Professor. I’ll try to reverse engineer the spell, and hopefully that will take away the affects.” Not the encouraging straight forward answer she would have hoped for, but it would have to do.

First things first. People are naturally going to attack a random wolf if they come across it, so they needed to make sure Felix lived long enough to be fixed, and didn’t kill anyone in the process. “We need to get him somewhere safe. No men, I think they are too threatening. We need to keep him calm.” Felix nuzzled against her arm, seemingly looking for attention rather than something to just rub against, and she lifted her hand enough to set it on the side of his head. He whined softly and her commanding persona crumbled away as her eyes met much larger amber ones that looked strangely sad.

“I know…” she whispered softly, not wanting Constance to overhear a tone that might be perceived as weakness, “We’re going to fix this. I promise.” He stepped over her and then shuffled around until he could curl up at her side, his head resting on her stomach as he slowly shut his eyes. 

Wolves are nocturnal… right? So, he might be tired. He said she smelled good, and always seemed a little blissed out when she got too close. Would he fit in her room? It might be dangerous to get him from here to there, but if they could get him in there and keep him in there, he should stay calm. That might have been why she found him sleeping in front of her door this morning.

She hardened her exterior again as she commanded, “Go clear the way to the exiting tunnel. I’ll take him to my room.”

Constance scoffed derisively at the very idea. “Professor! It’s a wild animal—”

“It’s FELIX and you’re going to fix him. For now, clear the way to the tunnel. NOW.” Constance hugged the wall as she shuffled around them and then scurried down the hallway. 

“Felix?” She scratched near his ear as if he were a stray dog at the monastery, and his tail wagged ever so slightly as his ears perked up. “Can you understand me? Nod if you understand me.” She stopped scratching and his tail stopped wagging. Amber eyes opened and he whined softly as he lifted his head and nipped at her hair. Dread washed over her as she realized he couldn’t understand her. Did he recognize who people were? He obviously wanted to protect her, but would he attack one of their friends if they got too close? What was going to happen if his father found out? 

She groaned internally at the very idea. What was she supposed to do about Lord Rodrigue? And Dimitri?! What was she going to do if they found out? They were supposed to be preparing to march for the Great Bridge of Myrddin in two weeks. She wasn’t going to be able to do anything if she was sequestered in her room with a giant wolf Felix. Not to mention the amount of panic she would have to deal with when Felix’s father acted like any normal father would at the news. Felix would hate the amount of fuss he would have to deal with once she got him turned back into a human.

_Why is my life so fucking weird?_

She nudged his head softly and she slowly sat up, watching him carefully in case he attacked. He didn’t seem on edge with her at all, in fact, he almost seemed needy. His eyes watched her carefully as she moved to standing, and he nudged her back when she bent down to pick up the tattered remains of Felix’s night clothes and boots. “Come on, Felix. Let’s go to my room. You’ll be safer there.” 

Even when she was standing and he was on all fours, his head easily reached her shoulder. He nudged her as they walked, whining softly every once and a while and nipping at her coat. She was going to need a new one when this was done. She’d add it to the growing tab Constance was accruing in the back of her mind, for physical and emotional damages because FUCK. Felix gets her all hot and bothered and then turns into a fucking wolf? Sothis, DAMN IT.

Whatever Constance had done in effort to clear the tunnels, it worked extremely well. She thought she saw the barest flash of lavender out of the corner of her eye, but that particular wolf was not her main concern right now. Oh goddess… she really needed to stop fishing with Alois. 

Constance was standing near the entrance to Abyss, speaking in frantic hushed tones with Lysithea and a thoroughly rumpled Manuela, who quickly snapped out of hangover mode to gape at her and Wolf Felix as they slowly walked toward them. Wolf Felix was more on edge with more people around, but he didn’t move to attack them, so maybe females were safe? Which… made no sense. 

“That’s…” Lysithea’s eyes were wide as she put a hand over her mouth, she shrilly cried, “Constance… what did you do?!” The younger female immediately turned on the blonde with a glare. 

“The spell was supposed to make him stronger and faster. I think we can all agree I have achieved that feat?” A hesitant chuckle bubbled from Constance, but no one present was amused. She hung her head in shame when she realized that no one was going to cut her some slack, the weight of their displeasure working like a bright ray of sunshine on the blonde.

Manuela raised an eyebrow at Byleth as she asked in an inquisitive tone, “What exactly do you plan to do with him?” Her brown eyes flicked to Byleth’s side, where Wolf Felix was tensed and watching their interactions with his lip curled.

Byleth fought to keep her expression neutral as she explained, “He seems to be fine as long as I’m here,” he nudged her shoulder with his head, as if he knew what she was saying, “but he can’t understand me. He’s on edge but not aggressive around you three, but he was hostile with Balthus. Keeping him away from males seems like the best course of action.”

Manuela giggled girlishly and shook her head. She practically sang, “Perhaps it is YOU we are supposed to keep away from males.”

She tilted her head in confusion, but flinched when the action earned her a nip to her sleeve. Wolf Felix had miscalculated and sharp teeth grazed against her fingers, making her hiss at the pain. Felix immediately whimpered, his amber eyes became impossibly wide, and he tucked his tail as he bowed the upper half of his body toward the ground. The whimpers he was making were actually kind of heartbreaking, if she even had a heart.

“Come here, dear,” Manuela called with a wave of her hand. As she worked on healing the small gashes on her fingers she whispered, “Are you sure it’s safe for you to be around him when he’s like this? I understand that he’s calmer with you, but he’s acting purely on animal instinct right now.”

“Manuela is correct,” Lysithea chimed in with a thoughtful tone, “Felix seems to be treating you as a potential mate, but the things that wolves normally do when courting one another can be harmful to you, such as the nipping.” She pointedly looked toward her freshly healed fingers.

“Potential…” she couldn’t finish the sentence as her head began to feel like it was floating. Oh, and that annoying fluttering feeling was back. Odd.

Lysithea bluntly finished for her, “Mate. Yes. The aggressiveness toward males, but submission to you shows that he thinks of you as a female to impress. He is trying to prove himself dominant over the others, but submissive to you, in hopes he will have the opportunity to… well…” Lysithea waved her hand through the air as her cheeks tinged a rosy pink a few shades lighter than her eyes. She cleared her throat and stated in matter-of-fact tone, “Wolves have an incredibly complex social hierarchy. It’s actually quite fascinating.”

A cold wash of something that might have been dread settled over her. She asked, “You don’t think he’d try anything while he’s like this?” She couldn’t keep the horror from her tone, and she saw the look of pure terror that crossed Constance’s face.

Lysithea hummed thoughtfully, crossing her arms before her as she raised one fist to her chin. Ever the analytical mind, even when discussing something like bestiality. Byleth barely suppressed a shudder. “Well, there’s no telling, really. He’s latched onto you, but doesn’t seem to acknowledge the rest of us. It hints that Felix is still in there somewhere, because he’s not just attacking all of us at random like a wolf who felt threatened would. However, I do find the fact that he’s not responding to your questions, troubling.” 

Byleth glanced back at Felix, only to find that he was still bowing himself down while making small whimper sounds. She could see what Lysithea was talking about with the submission, but this REALLY wasn’t what she had in mind. 

“If it helps,” Lysithea added, “Wolves only copulate when the female alpha secretes a specific sex hormone. You obviously lack the wolf biology, so it stands to reason that he wouldn’t act on it. I’d wager he thinks he’s trying to secure a future mate by keeping you away from any that might try to take you from him.”

“How do you know all of this stuff?” Manuela incredulously asked.

Lysithea bristled and in a sharper tone explained, “I know a lot about a lot of things. Knowledge is vital to me.” 

“Can you try to find a way to fix him?” Byleth interjected, trying to get this conversation back on track. “With all of you working together, I’m sure you could find a way to--”

The brilliant mage snapped, “Of course, Professor. Why do you think I’m still standing here?” Lysithea looked slightly apologetic after the outburst and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I would also like to make sure that Felix is returned to his former self. Let us go and look over Constance’s notes, shall we?”

“Will one of you make sure the path to my room is clear first?” All that stood between them was the alley between the bath house and her room, but she couldn’t take any chances with Felix like this. _Speaking of…_

She walked over to Wolf Felix, who was still bowed down. She knelt down in front of him and scratched near his ear, but his tail was still tucked as he kept his ears flattened against his head. “Felix?” The smallest whine sounded out as he nuzzled at her knee. “I’m okay, see?” She put her hand where he could see it, and felt his rough tongue drag over the once abused skin. He raised his head to look at her, before laying his head on her shoulder and using it to pull her against his fur-covered chest, like some sort of weird hug.

“Oh dear… my reputation is ruined. I shall never live this moment down. At this rate I shall never restore House Nuvelle to its former glory.” Constance bemoaned from behind her. Anger burned like a fire within her, and she had the overwhelming desire to let it burn the girl responsible for this mess to a crisp, but she took a steadying breath and shut her eyes. She tried to remind herself that it was unintentional, and that Constance would make up for it by fixing this. As if Wolf Felix could sense her distress, the pressure against her increased as a small growl sounded in the back of his throat.

“It’s fine. It’s going to be fine. Everything is going to get back to normal soon.” It became a mantra as she whispered it into Wolf Felix’s fur, continuing it in her head as she reluctantly stood and walked out after Manuela, who had successfully cleared the area. 

She ran toward her room, and Felix quickly jaunted along after her, before hesitating for the barest moment at her doorway. Amber eyes took in the room until he took in a noisy breath and slowly walked in. She shut and locked the door, before turning to watch him slowly sniff along every inch of the room. When he had finished, he then turned to her and stared, almost like he expected something. 

She foolishly asked, “Is everything okay?” before realizing that he wasn’t going to be able to understand her. She shook her head lightly, chiding herself, as she walked over to the bed and plopped down on top of it. _Weirdest day EV…_

She couldn’t finish the thought, because Felix chose that moment to leap up onto the bed, and there was a massive creak as he moved to situate himself against her side. It only took a second before the legs of her bed groaned in protest and snapped under his weight. She shouted in surprise as the mattress fell to the floor with a loud crash, and Felix moved on top of her like she was in danger. Though currently the only thing she was in danger of was being suffocated by the fur of his thick coat. 

She spluttered and spit as she maneuvered her head out from under him and lightly pushed him off. He shifted until his body was pressed against her side and his head was settled on the crook of her neck. She irritably grumbled, “That’s not exactly how I imagined breaking the bed.” Fuck… she was still horny. Fuck Felix Hugo Fraldarius for making her like this and then turning into a Sothis damned wolf that wouldn’t leave her damned side. 

Wolf Felix let out a heavy breath as his body relaxed. He almost sounded like he was falling asleep. “So… does this mean you… like me? Or just want to fuck me?” That gained no reaction, but she quickly added, “Don’t you dare try to fuck me like this. I swear I’ll kill you.” He opened his mouth wide in a yawn before shutting it and licking his chops. The barest sensation of tongue on her neck had her rolling her eyes. Figures he’d be a cocky shit, even as a wolf.

“I suppose we’re going to have to talk about this once you’re back to normal.” She moved her free arm across her body to lightly stroke his fur, earning her a soft whine of what she figured was appreciation or approval. “I wonder if you’ll even remember any of this.” She highly doubted it, and she appreciated the mental image of a flustered and pink faced Felix when she informed him of his antics. It would be slightly cruel, but he deserved it. And she really did like the way his face looked when he got embarrassed. It made him appear softer, less abrasive than normal. 

That fluttering feeling came back when the image presented itself in her mind’s eye.

Wait… did she… like him? Like… like him, like him? Was she even capable of that? Sure she’d had daydreams about shoving him against a wall and kissing him until he begged for her, or taking him on the ground of the training grounds after a spar. But sex was just sex. She was a mercenary for Sothis’ sake. She knew what lust was, even if the feeling was always somewhat muted before… well before she had all of these pesky feelings.

Oh goddess… she would slap a hand to her forehead if she had a free one. Now was not the time to try and analyze feelings. But anytime she tried to think about what she could do to get him back to normal, this suffocating weight wormed its way onto her chest and made it feel harder to breathe. Wolf Felix whimpered in his sleep and she hushed him softly as she continued running her fingers through his fur. She concentrated on the sound of his breathing for a while, counting them out as the warmth of his body beside her lulled her into a state of dozing.

A knock sounded at the door, making Wolf Felix tense and her jolt into a sitting position. She put a hand on Wolf Felix’s head and hesitantly called, “Who is it?” 

“Hey Professor,” Sylvain’s voice filtered through the door, making Wolf Felix raise to standing on the mattress and growl threateningly, “Do you know where Felix is? He was being super weird yesterday, and now I can’t find him anywhere. I know I’m not one to normally worry about it… but I’m,” a nervous chuckle filtered through the door, “well I’m worried.”

She hadn’t thought of a plan for this yet. That was a terrible misstep on her part. She tried to coax Wolf Felix to be quiet, but it wasn’t working. He had firmly planted himself between her and the perceived threat on the other side of the door.

Sylvain hesitantly called, “Uhh… Professor? Are you okay?” 

She cleared her throat and called back, “I’m fine, Sylvain. I’m a little busy at the moment, would you mind if I find you later?”

“I hate to be that guy, but… what about Felix? Aren’t you worried?” She’d be annoyed if there wasn’t obvious anxiety in his tone. She knew that Sylvain wasn’t the carefree, lazy, skirt-chaser he presented himself as. He was brilliant in his own right-- maybe not Lysithea level, but Lysithea worked hard for every bit of knowledge she gained— skilled with a lance, and he was always helping his friends in little ways they didn’t often realize. He was a good guy, if not a bit annoying with the flowery words and constant fake flirting.

She stood and walked around Wolf Felix. She patted him on the head and whispered that everything was going to be alright before she slipped out the door, muffling the growls of protest that immediately erupted on the other side. “What the hell is going on in there?!” Sylvain’s eyes widened as a thud sounded on the door, presumably Felix trying to bust down the door. The little shit.

“Listen, I don’t have a lot of time. Felix is… not himself right now. I’m looking after him, and I already have people working to fix it but—” a groan of protest at the hinges had Sylvain taking several steps back with wide eyes. 

There was a frantic edge to Sylvain’s tone as he yelled, “What happened?! Is he going to be okay?!” It was scratching noises this time, and the doors rattled as growls of rage filtered from the other side.

“Well…” she paused, considering how she should handle this, “he’s a giant wolf.” Sylvain’s eye twitched. “And he doesn’t like being around other males… or doesn’t like me being around other males? I’m thinking that,” as if on cue, a loud rattling sound echoed as Felix threw his body against the doors, “means it’s the latter.” 

A lot of emotions flickered over Sylvain’s face, but she sure as hell wasn’t expecting amusement to be the one he landed on. An incredulous laugh trickled out of him, building until it became louder and louder and shook his whole body. It also succeeded in making the thudding against the doors worse. She really needed to get back inside or he was going to break down the damned doors. “Oh goddess…” Sylvain wiped away a fake tear, “this is fucking priceless!”

She pinched the bridge of her nose as irritation flared. “Look… I really need to get back inside. Just keep people away, alright? And don’t tell anyone. If Rodrigue finds out...”

“Shit! Rodrigue!” Sylvain’s eyes went comically wide. “Ummm… yeah. I’ll take care of it.” The sound of splintering wood startled them both and he turned to jog away as he called, “Get back in there to lover boy.” She ignored that comment and turned back to go into the room, but paused when he called in a softer tone, “Be nice to him, will ya?”

She grumbled, “Let’s worry about getting him back to normal without him breaking down my door, first.” Worry flickered over Sylvain’s features, so obviously that wasn’t the answer to make him feel better, but she ignored that as she yelled, “I’m coming! Stop the damn ramming or you’re going to hurt yourself!” She cracked the door and Wolf Felix’s snout eagerly pushed through, but when she lightly nudged it with her knee to try and get him out of the way, he lifted his head to grab a mouthful of her coat and pulled her roughly inside. She barely managed to kick the door shut behind her before he threw himself bodily on top of her and whined repeatedly as he rubbed his head all over her body, licking at her face and neck.

“Are you kidding me, right now?! I was out there for two seconds!” He crawled off of her and whined as he did the bowing thing, obviously not liking the anger in her tone. “People are worried about you! I have to try and keep everyone calm AND keep you from ripping apart the monastery!” She pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled heavily as she turned away from her current-- VERY NEEDY-- problem. Eventually the anger subsided and her chest twisted at the repeated pathetic whines.

“Okay… okay…” she cooed as she walked back to kneel in front of him. “I know you don’t understand. I’m sorry that I got angry.” When she awkwardly patted his head, he immediately pulled her into the weird hug thing he had done in the tunnels. She idly said, “Dinner yesterday certainly makes a lot more sense now.”

It had been so weird to see him practically bare his teeth at Sylvain. Felix was always annoyed by Sylvain’s antics, but there was an air of hostility that she was unaccustomed to. Sylvain’s reaction told her it was weird to him, as well. Then there was the touching of their thighs beneath the table… It wouldn’t mean anything with someone else, but Felix was different. Felix wasn’t normally a fan of touch, so every touch he did make was deliberate. She remembered the warmth in her chest as she felt it, and the odd sense of comfort that stemmed from it. Of course, she had still been worried. When she felt how warm his skin was, and saw the haziness of his eyes, it had only made that worry worse. 

She buried her face in Wolf Felix’s fur and whispered, “I wish you would have told me that something was happening sooner. I could have gone back and stopped you. I can’t go back that far, now.” A tightness formed in her throat, similar to when she watched Jeralt die. She croaked, “What if they can’t fix you?” He whimpered softly and nipped at her hair before nuzzling against her neck. She sniffled as her sight became blurry. 

Shit. Of course, she was going to start crying. 

She had only cried a handful of times in her life, and most of them were in the days following Jeralt’s death. She considered those days as one event because the tears never seemed to stop, no matter what she did. That was why she had shut herself away in her room, embarrassed at the thought of being seen like that. Ironically enough, it had been Felix who eventually dragged her out of her room to train. His usual abrasive nature had pulled her out of her pit of despair and gotten her back out into the world.

The second time she cried was when she realized that Sothis was truly gone, because she had been the person who truly knew her best. She still missed her friend. 

And the third time had been as soon as she returned from fighting bandits in the town below the monastery and reuniting with her students. She cried for Dedue’s death, Dimitri’s madness, and the loss of almost five years of her life. Then she had locked all of those feelings away so she could go out and fight a war.

It seemed she was going to add a fourth to the list. She bowed her head as the tears began to spill down her cheeks, and Felix whimpered softly as he tried to part the curtain of her hair with his nose. She whispered, “I’ve let you down, haven’t I? I should have been the one she used the spell on, or I should have stopped it. I shouldn’t have let this happen.” Wolf Felix’s ears pinned back as he dropped his tail, and she could almost imagine he was frowning. She rested her head against his and whispered, “I’m so sorry.”

He stood and circled her for a while as she hung her head, before eventually dropping onto his stomach in front of her and tucking his head between his paws. He made a sound that was almost like a howl, but it was soft and sorrowful as he looked up at her. She moved to lie down beside him on the ground and buried her face in his fur. He laid his head softly over hers as her tears streamed faster, feeling overwhelmingly terrified that this could be the rest of Felix’s life.

When the next knock came, she was sitting on the floor cross-legged with Wolf Felix’s sleeping form pressed against her back as she drew up battle formations for the Bridge of Myridden. She was actively trying to think about something other than the stressful situation with Felix. She called, “I’m a little busy at the moment. Can you come back later?”

“It’s me, Professor,” Lysithea’s voice called from the other side, “I have food for you.”

She stood and Wolf Felix shook out his coat, moving to place himself between her and the door. She explained, “It’s just Lysithea. I’ll let her in, and I won’t leave.” Obviously that got no reaction, except for a slight curling of his lip to show his rather large canines. She used a firmer tone as she said, “We talked about this, remember?” He whimpered softly and nuzzled into her shoulder, and she patted his head before walking away to open the door and let Lysithea in. 

Wolf Felix relaxed slightly when he realized it was a female and that she wasn’t leaving, and his ears perked up as Lysithea set the tray of food down on the desk and then pulled a parcel from a bag on her shoulder. “I brought this for Felix, though it’s probably best if you give it to him.” She took the parcel from Lysithea’s outstretched hand and opened the wrapping, before grimacing as her eyes landed on the raw meat. Lysithea sympathetically said, “I know… but I didn’t know what else to get him.”

“No, this is really helpful. Thank you.” She walked over to the corner and knelt down on the floor. Wolf Felix plodded over and nudged at the package before she placed it on the paper on the floor. She could already tell that clean up was going to be really fun. He licked her face and then dug in ravenously. She shuddered, realizing that future licks were going to be tainted by the raw meat.

Lysithea asked, “How have things been going?”

She walked over to grab a piece of bread from the tray of food Lysitha brought and took a bite. “Fine. Sylvain came by so we had a bit of trouble with that,” she waved a hand toward the door that now bore massive claw marks and had splintered in places, “but other than that he’s mostly been sleeping.”

“Ah… yes,” Lysithea nodded and put a hand to her chin, “Wolves are nocturnal, so it may be best if you try to take him out tonight. I doubt he’ll be eager to be locked up in here.”

She tried not to sound too disappointed as she asked, “You won’t be able to fix him before tonight?” 

“It took several months for Constance to create the spell, Professor,” the white-haired mage chided, “It will take time to reverse engineer it and make sure there are no side effects. There may be some trial and error, but I promise we are trying our best.”

“I’m sorry,” Byleth nodded before she dropped her head to her hands, “I’m just… worried.”

Pink eyes stared at her critically as Lysithea said, “It is unusual to see this much emotion from you, Professor.”

She deadpanned and dryly said, “It is unusual for one of your former students to turn into a goddess damned wolf.” She waved her arm toward Wolf Felix, who was licking his chops after already having finished his meal.

“I see your point.” Lysithea nodded with a slight frown. “Can I get anything else for you, Professor?”

“Would you mind taking these pages to Gilbert, Seteth, and Rodrigue? You can tell them I’m not feeling well, but I’m still working on some formations that we can speak about later.”

“Of course, Professor.” She nodded and took the papers from her outstretched hand before leaving the room. 

Wolf Felix plodded over to nuzzle into her neck with a soft whine. She chuckled dryly and scratched behind his ear in the way that she now knew made his tail wag. “Feeling needy again?” He pushed his head against her until she toppled backward and then promptly laid on top of her, squishing her as he licked her face excitedly. “Ugh! Your breath is AWFUL!” She tried to shove his head away, but he nuzzled into the crook of her neck and stayed there. “You’re squishing me, you know?” He nipped at her hair, pulling slightly before letting go with a huffed breath.

“So you know, you just don’t care?” She chuckled softly and he whined in a way that was almost playful as he thumped his tail on the floor. “That sounds a little more like you.” She circled her arms around his neck as much as she could in an attempt at an embrace. “They don’t know when they will be able to fix you. You’re stuck like this a little longer.” His tail continued to thump against the floor, telling her he didn’t understand, but was content with the contact with her either way. She couldn’t decide how that made her feel.

Wolf Felix still had her pinned in the same position on the floor when another knock sounded at the door several minutes later. Not that she had made any sort of concerted effort to push him off. She hesitantly called, “Who is it?”

“Professor, I’m sorry to disturb you.” Her unbeating heart crept into her throat as Rodrigue’s low voice filtered through the door. “Lysithea informed us that you were feeling unwell, and I wanted to make sure that you were not overexerting yourself when you should be resting.” Wolf Felix growled softly, but not in a way that was threatening, as he climbed off of her. He plodded toward the door and stood on his hind legs, resting the front ones against the door. 

“I’ll be alright, Rodrigue. Thank you for the concern. I would feel awfully useless if I didn’t do anything while cooped up in here.” Wolf Felix dropped back onto all four paws and started pacing in front of the door, sending longing glances her way every couple of seconds.

Rodrigue chuckled softly and replied, “You and my son are alike in that way, I suppose. He always insists that he must be doing something, even while he is ill…” He trailed off for a moment, and she thought that perhaps he had left. However, Wolf Felix was still pacing in front of the door. He lifted his head like he might make that howling noise, and Byleth rushed over to hush him. “Have you perchance heard from my son today? He hasn’t been to the training grounds or the dining hall today, and his bed seemed like it hadn’t been slept in last night.”

“Ummm… I haven’t—”

“Also one of the knights that was patrolling last night reported that they saw him sleeping against your door.”

“Oh.” Warmth rushed to her cheeks as she considered what she was supposed to do, but in her distraction, she took her hand off of Wolf Felix’s snout. He raised his head and howled softly as he looked at the door.

“Was that a…” the door handle jiggled, as Rodrigue shouted, “Professor! Are you alright?!” 

She cast a sharp look at Wolf Felix, who bowed his head and tucked his tail like he knew he was in trouble. Realizing she had no other choice, she stood and slowly cracked open the door.

“Rodrigue… I need to tell you something, but I’d like you to try and remain calm.” Wolf Felix had a mouthful of her coat, and was trying to pull her back, so she widened her stance to try and continue blocking the door. She grunted slightly with exertion and explained, “A spell went wrong yesterday, and it’s had some unfortunate side effects. Now Felix is--” she yelped in surprise as a firm tug ripped her coat and sent her falling backwards into Felix, who immediately whined and checked on her with a nuzzle to her neck.

“Felix?” Rodrigue’s voice was a breathless whisper, and when she lifted her head, she saw him standing in the doorway with wide eyes and his jaw hanging open. “My son, what has happened to you?”

Wolf Felix raised his head and swiveled it to howl softly at Rodrigue before dipping down to lick at her face again. She shoved his head away as warmth rushed to her cheeks. She nervously stammered, “Felix… Stop it!” 

“I don’t…” Rodrigue shook his head quickly and stammered, “By the goddess… What is happening?”

She nervously said, “It’s a bit of a long story. He doesn’t quite understand what’s happening, he just knows who specific people are…” she paused and tilted her head as she sat up, “Well, I thought it was just me. But it seems he knows you, too. He’s not outright dangerous, I just thought it best to keep him away from the others until Constance, Lysithea, and Manuela can figure out a way to undue the effects of the spell.”

Rodrigue whispered, “How long has he been like this?” 

“Since this morning. I found him at my door and he had… ears,” she motioned to Wolf Felix’s ears and he nipped at her hair, “so I took him to see the person that cast the spell, but I was too late. He changed a few minutes later into this.” She bowed her head and interlaced her fingers in her lap. “I’m really sorry, Rodrigue. If I had known this was going to happen—” She cut off with another surprised yell as Felix nuzzled into her chest and pushed her down again, immediately laying on top of her. She shouted in frustration, “Would you stop that?!” Felix climbed off of her with a whine and bowed again as he whimpered softly. 

When she sat up to face Rodrigue, his eyebrows were raised as he looked between them incredulously. “I honestly don’t know whether I’m more surprised by the fact that my son has been turned into a wolf, or the fact that he’s courting his former Professor.” He chuckled dryly and shook his head. “Courting anyone for that matter.”

She shook her head vigorously and stammered, “That’s not… we’re not… we haven’t…” She put a hand over her face to try and cover her blush. “He’s only been like this since that stupid spell. I’m not sure what’s happening, but I promise you we aren’t courting or anything. I would never do that. I was his teacher.” She shook her head firmly and cut a sharp look to Felix, who whimpered softly and bowed his head further.

Rodrigue sighed heavily and tiredly said, “Well, you’ll break the poor boy’s heart if you say things like that.”

“I’m not… that’s not…” She threw her other hand over her face to join the first and shook her head. Felix butted his head against her back and she waved him off, making him whimper louder. 

“My son has always admired you greatly, Professor.” Rodrigue closed the door and leaned against it with his arms crossed. “He spoke highly of you in his seldom letters he sent, and when he returned after the fall of the monastery, he was quite devastated... in his Felix sort of way.” Felix hesitantly moved to nuzzle her neck again, and she didn’t shove him away this time. Taking that as a sign that she wasn’t mad at him anymore, he laid down, setting his head in her lap. “If you do not feel the same way, that is one thing, but to block yourself completely due to your prior position is completely unnecessary.”

“Even if I did…” she paused, not wanting to think about whether she did have feelings for Felix right now, “I’m a common-born mercenary, Rodrigue. Surely there are many others who would be better suited for Felix.”

That earned a soft chuckle from Rodrigue and she uncovered her face to look up at him. “A common-born mercenary who is blessed by the goddess and is now almost single-handedly commanding a rebellion against the Empire. I’ve seen how powerful and kind you are. I assure you, he could do much worse.”

She insisted, “I think it’s just the spell. I was there when it was cast, so maybe it was—”

“It is not an effect of the spell.” Rodrigue shook his head again as he lightly stroked his facial hair. His tone took on an almost wistful quality as he softly said, “My son has not been the most affectionate since the loss of his elder brother Glenn, but I’ve seen the way he looks at you. It was similar to how my wife used to look at me, with those same amber eyes he inherited from her.”

She hesitantly stroked Felix’s head and he let out a heavy breath through his nose. She failed to keep her voice steady as she softly asked, “What if we can’t fix him?”

The slightest of smiles pulled at his lips as he kindly said, “I doubt you will allow that to happen.” He crossed his arms and his features morphed into something more stern, looking at her as she imagined a disappointed father would look at their child. She and Jeralt never had that type of relationship, so she couldn’t be sure. “Now, how were you planning on keeping from me that my son and heir had been turned into a wolf?”

“I already have people working on a reversal,” she promised in a frantic tone, “and I’ll keep him away from the others so no one accidentally attacks him and he doesn’t accidentally attack anyone. I didn’t want to tell too many people because of how private Felix likes to be. I highly doubt he’ll appreciate learning he was acting like a lapdog.” She waved her hand to a dozing Felix in her lap. In a softer, more sincere tone, she said, “I really am sorry, Rodrigue.”

Rodrigue’s features immediately softened as he smiled down at them. “I sincerely appreciate the care you use when watching out for my son. I’m pleased he has someone who understands him like you do.”

She immediately tried to deny it. “I wouldn’t say I—”

“You are not fooling me, child.” She snapped her jaw shut with a frown and he shook his head lightly as he chuckled. He sighed, “Ah, to be young again.” He turned and put a hand on the handle before looking back and adding, “I will do my best to cover with the others for you. Perhaps the three of us could have tea when Felix returns to himself?” 

“I… don’t…” she fought the urge to rub a hand down her face in exasperation. “I will see what I can do. Thank you, Rodrigue.” Felix was going to be so pissed when he turned back into himself, but it’s his own damned fault his father thinks they are courting… so… 

Rodrigue slipped out the door without another word. She scratched behind his ears as she said, “I hope you know that you’re so in for it when you turn back into yourself.” Wolf Felix’s ear twitched, but otherwise she got no reaction.

When it was finally late enough, she cracked open her door and chanced a peek outside. Felix had begun pacing about an hour ago, whining steadily every time he walked by the door. She knew she would have to let him burn some energy somehow. She swung the door open wide and he barreled past her, taking off down the pathway. She hissed after him, “Felix!” She then quickly shut her door and took off after him, but she didn’t stand a chance. Like this, he was way too fast for her. 

Due to the color of his fur, it was impossible to see him. She was already regretting this decision as she ran toward the gate, hoping he’d be looking for a way out instead of finding a way to scare people out of their skins and get himself killed in the process. She got to the gate and found Felix pacing near it nervously. Once he spotted her, he plodded up to her and nuzzled her shoulder with a soft whine. She cooed, “I can’t keep up with you, idiot. I’m not a wolf.” He huffed out a breath and nipped at her hair. “Go. I’ll wait here for you.”

She figured he would come back… right? He had certainly been attached to her enough for the last several hours to assume that would be the case. He whined mournfully and placed his head on her shoulder. “Just go,” she urged him, “I’m going to be right here. But be safe, alright?” It was weird having Felix be this needy, not that it was really Felix. She couldn’t help wondering if this was how Felix would act if he wasn’t so trapped in his head all the time. It was intriguing to try and imagine the regular Felix doing the things Wolf Felix was doing.

He took a few hesitant steps before taking off in a sprint, excitedly panting as he ran further and further away. She moved to sit against the stone wall of the gate for a while, and watch the stars. However, a few minutes later, a long howl sounded out in the distance. She stood up quickly, placing a hand on the hilt of her sword. Did that mean he was calling her? Did he need her? She strained her ears, trying to see if he did it again. What did a howl mean, anyway? Maybe she should have asked Lysithea more questions after her brain shorted with the whole “potential mate” deal. 

It happened again a few minutes later, but closer this time. She tore through the trees, her sword glowing in her hand to provide enough light to guide her way. “Felix!” She called as she ran, hoping he’d find her if he was in trouble. “Felix! Where are you?!” 

The howl sounded out again, off to her right a little ways. She called, “I’m right here!” as she ran. “I’m coming!” A few moments later there was rustling in the trees and she lifted her sword to see Wolf Felix dragging a dead deer in his jaws. He straightened, blood and gore dripping from his snout and rushed toward her with an excited yip. He dragged her by the coat toward the dead deer and she bit back the urge to grimace. 

She hesitantly said, “Good job, Felix. That was… fast hunting.” His ears drooped as his tail tucked between his legs. She cooed, “What’s wrong? Why don’t you eat it?” He moved behind her, nudging her toward it, but she waved him off. 

Was it some sort of gift or something? An instinct to provide for her or something like that? “No no no, Felix. I’m not going to eat it. You eat it.” He whined and moved to lick her, but she backed away with her hands raised. “Nope. Not all bloody and gross like you are right now. Even I have my limits.”

He whimpered a pathetic whimper and tried to walk toward her, but she kept backing away with her hands raised. She had done plenty of hunting while growing up, having to live off the land when funds were scarce as she and her father traveled with the mercenary troupe. She had skinned deer and other animals before, so really that wasn’t what was bothering her. It was more the blood and gore that was all over his snout. She hadn’t realized how wolfish he actually was until that moment, and it was suddenly intimidating. 

He made one last attempt to get closer to her, and she took another step back, running into a tree. She expected him to close the distance as he had in the tunnels before he changed into a wolf, but instead he bowed his head low before turning around and running away. She called after him, “Wait! Where are you going?!”She tried to run after him, but failed miserably. She was stumbling around through the trees and underbrush for several minutes before she sighed in defeat and took in her surroundings. She really should have been paying more attention to where she was going, because now she had absolutely no idea where she was. “Felix!” She called his name as loud as she could and tried to listen for a howl. She couldn’t hear anything.

She froze as her grip on her sword tightened. She suddenly realized it was too quiet. She should hear something, bugs or animal noises, but she heard nothing but the sound of her breathing. She crouched on instinct and slowly crept toward a tree, trying to find cover after foolishly giving away her position if someone was out here, but she was too late.

An assassin jumped down from the tree she was standing near for cover, and she ducked just in time to avoid the sword that lodged itself into the tree where her neck just was. The assassin sneered, “Out all alone, Fell Star? Saves me some trouble.” 

Only one person had ever called her that name. Solon, the day she was transported to the darkness of Zaharas. He pulled his blade out of the trunk and quickly charged her, and she blocked each of his blows as she backed up slowly. She lifted her hand to launch a Fire spell toward him, but he rolled out of the way before charging her again. She couldn’t turn back time, or the assassin would make his way to the monastery later. Who knew who else he would target? She couldn’t take that risk, not with her students and friends.

She heard a whistling noise to her right, and ducked in time to dodge the arrow that embedded itself into the ground nearby. She tried to listen to find out how many there were, but the assassin was so fast she had to divert most of her attention to him. She sent up a flare, hoping that one of the knights on patrol might see it, right as a howl sounded out in the distance. The potential of Felix being in danger was enough to get her adrenaline pumping, and she yelled in fury as she charged the assassin, eventually knocking his blade from his hand and stabbing him through the chest. 

An arrow struck her shoulder and she bit back a cry of pain. She swiveled and cast a Bolganone spell in the direction she thought it had come from, lighting a group of trees on fire. She couldn’t see the archer, and the pain in her shoulder was getting worse. This was such a terrible idea. She was normally smarter than this!

Another whistle and she dropped to the ground to avoid the next arrows trajectory. She rolled into a nearby bush, hoping to hide until she could get a location on the archer, but a howl sounded out from nearby. Felix didn’t know how to fight like this. If he got hurt, or worse, she’d never be able to forgive herself.

Movement in the trees caught her eye and she launched another Fire spell before rolling further away. An agonized scream told her she’d gotten that one, but were there more? An angry growl sounded out off to her left and she scrambled to her feet, running in that direction. 

Another assassin barreled into her, knocking her to the ground. She rolled away as the assassin drove their sword into the ground where she had just been. A terrifying growl sounded out right as the assassin was tackled by Wolf Felix. She scrambled to her feet, calling out to Felix to run away. Wolf Felix tried to bite the assassin’s neck, but they pulled a dagger from somewhere and stabbed him in the throat, cutting off his furious growl as he fell limply to the ground.

Time came to a halt as rage bubbled under every inch of her skin. She turned back time and watched the dagger leave Felix’s neck as her body moved back. Time restarted right before she had been knocked off her feet. Prepared this time, she swung the Sword of the Creator, cutting the assassin’s head clean from their shoulders with a cry of rage before they could hurt Felix.

Speaking of Felix, he sprinted into the brush near her right at that moment. “Felix! You’re okay!” She stumbled forward and dropped to her knees as she pressed her face into his fur. “You’re okay…” He whimpered as he nuzzled into her, licking near the place where the arrow was protruding from her shoulder. She pulled her knife from her belt and tried to reach back to cut off the excess so she could fight if she needed to, but it was too close to the middle of her back for her to reach. 

Her vision was starting to blur, and her body felt too warm, but she wondered if maybe that was because of the fire she had started. She collapsed forward as Wolf Felix anxiously whimpered and nudged at her side with his head. She whispered, “It’ll be okay, Felix. Everything is going to be alright.” He whined as he butted his head against hers, but she was too tired to lift her arms anymore. She pulled on the power to turn back time, but couldn’t seem to do it with how tired she was. _Poison… the arrow must have been laced with something. Foolish. I’ve been so reckless._

She heard the sound of multiple people running through the trees and she summoned enough energy to bat at Felix’s head and croak, “You have to go.” He growled and stood over her, trying to guard her from the incoming people. “Go… You have to run…” 

“Professor!” Someone shouted for her, their tone desperate, but she couldn’t figure out who it was. “Where are you?!” Felix growled low in his throat and crouched over her, accidentally pressing his body into the arrow in her shoulder causing her to weakly cry out in pain. He whimpered and stepped to the side, nudging her torso with his head to try and get her to move.

“You have to go… they don’t know… it’s… you…” her vision was starting to black out at the edges. Wolf Felix was sounding more and more desperate as the footsteps got closer. Her chest ached, and she couldn’t tell if it was from the poison or the desperate whines Wolf Felix was making. She thought she could hear wing beats before someone cried out in alarm. She croaked, “Don’t hurt him… Felix… it’s…” 

Everything faded away as she passed out.

She woke up feeling like she was on fire. She cracked her eyes open with a groan and immediately shut them again because the light in the room made it feel like something was stabbing into her forehead. The weight she hadn’t noticed on her chest, moved, and she felt the semi-familiar sensation of a wet nose nuzzling against her neck. She weakly mumbled, “Felix?”

“He’s alright. You’re quite lucky Ingrid had watch tonight, or you both would have been in some serious trouble.” Manuela’s gentle tone was quiet to her left as a wash of Faith magic ran through her. She sighed in relief and Felix whined softly as he butted his head against hers. Manuela quietly chuckled and said, “He’s been awfully worried about you.”

She croaked, “Hot.”

Manuela placed something cool on her forehead and explained, “You have a fever. Whoever it was that attacked you, laced the tips of their arrows with some nasty poison. You’re lucky they found you in time. What in the goddess’ name were you doing out in the woods in the middle of the night?”

“Felix…” he whined in response to her weakly saying his name, before laying his head on her chest. “They called me… Fell Star…” she took a deep breath as her head started to get fuzzy again. Sleep pulled at the back of her mind and she drifted back into slumber.

The next time she woke up, the world wasn’t as overwhelmingly bright, her body didn’t hurt nearly as much, and she didn’t feel like she was on fire anymore. She’d like to think of that as progress. She cracked open her eyes and semi-blindly felt around the bed, looking for Felix. She couldn’t feel him, and a sense of panic made her shoot to sitting with a groan of pain as the movement pulled at her wounded shoulder.

A now familiar whine sounded out from across the room and she looked in time to see Felix barreling across the room to tackle her back into the mattress. She was promptly licked within an inch of her life as she tried to take breaths of fresh air and only got Wolf Felix breath.

“Felix,” Flayn’s voice chided, “you must be gentle! She’s still weak from the fever!” It was followed by girlish giggles as he huffed out an impatient breath and continued his ministrations, despite the young healer’s chiding. Spurned by an overwhelming sense of relief, she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his fur. It seemed to satisfy him a little, stopping the desperate licking and whining. He stayed there, nuzzling her hair softly as she thanked her lucky stars that he was alright, even after she had been so foolish.

Flayn walked up to stand at the side of the bed and asked, “How are you feeling, Professor? Any better?”

“A lot,” she croaked through her dry throat. Flayn rushed over and brought her a cup of water, which she took with a grateful nod. Trying to drink with a beyond massive lapdog on top of her proved challenging, but she figured he’d probably had it pretty rough while she was out so she didn’t make him get off. _Speaking of out…_

“How long was I out?” She took a better glance around the infirmary and realized it had to be around late afternoon. 

“Most of the day, I’m afraid. The assassin’s poison was a potent one, so it took Manuela and I quite some time to ease it out of your system.” Flayn frowned slightly as she reached over to scratch behind Felix’s ear, earning a thump on the bed with his heavy tail. However, he didn’t leave his position on top of her, or raise his head, sending a weird sense of satisfaction through her. 

Byleth asked, “Where’s Manuela? I need to ask her about—”

“Oh! Perfect timing,” the songstress’ voice cooed from the doorway, “we were just coming up to see if we can get this pesky spell broken. Right, girls?”

Lysithea all but rolled her eyes at the older woman, and Byleth bit back a snicker as she wondered just how helpful Manuela had been with this whole process. “Constance?”

The blonde looked much more confident than the last time she had seen her, so that was good at least. “We have successfully reverse engineered the spell. We believe it will work similarly to how it did before, meaning that it will not be immediate, but will work gradually as it did the first time. Shall we see if it works?”

“Please,” she nodded her head lightly, “it would be much appreciated.” She nudged at Felix, who was still fussing over her a bit, and his head tilted up to look at her. “They’re going to try and turn you back now.” He liked the eagerness in her tone, she could tell by the way his ears stood up and his tail thumped on the bed. 

She sat up with a groan and moved a hand to her bandaged shoulder with a wince. Wolf Felix whined and nuzzled at the white cloth before bopping his nose against hers. “I know… I’m alright, though.”

“Here you are, Professor. Unfortunately, your clothes were in tatters, so you can wear this.” Flayn handed her a robe, which she tied around herself as she climbed out of the infirmary bed and moved to stand in the middle of the floor. 

Wolf Felix followed her, of course, and she placed a hand lightly on his head as she said, “Stay here, okay?” He whined as she backed away, but she kept her eyes on his, and kept her hands raised in a placating gesture. “I’m not sure how long he’ll stay there,” she cautioned without looking at the girls.

“Let us take care of it quickly then,” Constance said as magic began to be sensed in the room. Wolf Felix’s eyes narrowed as a growl started in the back of his throat, and she moved toward him to coo softly in his ear that everything was going to be alright. He relaxed somewhat, but his eyes were trained on Constance in an almost familiar glare. “It is ready, Professor.”

She backed away again, speaking in soothing tones the whole time as Wolf Felix began to move restlessly and whimper. The same golden light as the first time settled over his fur before seeping into him, and she immediately moved to stand in front of him again. She cooed, “Good job. You did so well.” He whined as he bopped her nose with his again, large amber eyes never straying from hers.

She turned to ask the women, “You said you think it will be similar to the first time? So the effects will take a couple of hours?”

“Correct,” Lysithea nodded, “we did not want to risk creating a completely separate spell and having unknown side effects, so this was the quickest and safest way.”

“It might be best to take him back to your quarters, Professor,” Flayn chimed from near the bed where she was working on putting away the dressings and herbs they were probably using on her shoulder. “He’s been rather anxious around the others, and I was told he did rather well when it was just the two of you.”

Lysithea nodded in agreement. “I agree. Wait out the effects of the spell, and inform us if you see any change.” 

Byleth nodded and patted Wolf Felix’s head. “Let’s get you out of here, yeah?” He nudged against her uninjured shoulder with a soft whine. She took her sword from the side of the bed and strapped it to her waist, which felt odd while being in an infirmary gown and a robe, but she shrugged that off. “Can you guys come with me to try and keep people away?”

“About that,” Manuela chuckled nervously and fiddled with her hair, “after last night, most of the others know about Felix’s current... condition. He wouldn’t leave your side as they carried you back to the monastery, and he created quite the scene as he tried to get up here to stay with you. People know to give you guys some space, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Oh,” she glanced behind her at Wolf Felix and grimaced, “you are not going to be happy about that, are you?” He laid his head heavily on her uninjured shoulder and huffed out a breath through his nose. “Alright, well… best behavior, then.” She bid the ladies farewell and walked out the door.

“Professor,” Seteth’s office door was open and he nodded from his seat at his desk, “I’m pleased to see you are awake. We have much to speak about,” his eyes trailed to Wolf Felix, who was growling low in his throat, “but it can be dealt with another time.”

Curiosity and wariness drove her to ask, “Do you know if they found any other assassins? They sounded like they were about to break into the monastery, and that my stumbling across them was supposedly luck on their part.” 

“I had the knights do a thorough sweep of the grounds and the surrounding woods.” Seteth stood and moved around the desk toward her, and Wolf Felix’s growls steadily increased in volume, “If there were more, they are gone now.” He looked at her sternly and chided, “That was very reckless, Professor. I don’t know what possessed you to do such a thing, but I ask that you refrain from doing so again.” Felix moved to stand in front of her as the growls became much more intimidating, though the advisor didn’t seem to pay him any mind.

She pulled Felix back, which he allowed, and gave him a sharp look. He tucked his tail, but still glared at Seteth with his teeth bared. She turned back to the advisor and said, “They called me Fell Star, like Solon did the day I was,” she paused and fought the urge to wince, “blessed by the goddess. I think I was the main target, but I didn’t know who else they might harm if they entered the monastery. I thought it was the only way.”

Seteth sighed heavily as he nodded his head. “I can understand your motivations, but I must ask you to hold your safety to a higher priority. You are the current head of the church, and much of this war effort depends on you. The emperor knows this, and it is safe to assume she will do anything she can to get you out of the way.”

She grumbled, “Believe me, I know.” How could she not know that one of her former students, one that she taught tactics and sword skills to, was out to kill her. Though, by leading a rebellion, she supposed she was the same. 

Seteth’s eyes softened slightly, but before he could say anything she added, “Let me make sure that Felix gets turned back to normal and then we’ll finalize plans for the taking of the Bridge of Myrddin.” She didn’t wait for an answer, she instead walked off with Wolf Felix trailing closely behind her.

Many gawked as they walked the short distance from the stairs to the ground level, to her room. Sylvain happened to be exiting the training grounds with Ingrid, and waved slightly before Wolf Felix started to growl and he backed off. Ingrid watched with wide eyes, obviously having difficulty comprehending what was happening. Byleth couldn’t really blame her.

They got back to her room with no further incidents and once the door was shut and locked, she laid down on the bed with a heavy sigh. She was still exhausted from the effects of the poison, though she was no longer in any real pain, which was good. Wolf Felix laid down beside her and opened his mouth wide with a yawn before tucking his head into the crook of her neck. “Maybe we’ll just…” she yawned loudly as she slowly shut her eyes, “take a nap… until you’re you again.” Wolf Felix licked her neck and nuzzled her before relaxing fully. She was lulled to sleep by the warmth of Wolf Felix beside her and the steady pace of his breathing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I take MANY creative liberties when it came to wolf behaviors and social hierarchy? Yes.
> 
> Is Felix really more of a massive and needy lapdog? Yes.
> 
> Do I regret it? No.
> 
> Also I loved writing Byleth's inner dialogue for this. I just think it's hilarious to think that the stoic and powerful professor curses a ton, is super crude, and bitterly sarcastic. What's the phrase? It's always the quiet ones?


	3. Baby, I'm Howling For You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The conclusion to our fun little tail. (Hahaha get it?)
> 
> Warning: There is some smutty smut in this chapter. I've put dividers if you don't like reading smut. It's not super vital to the story. So yeah. (There's definitely some dom/sub vibes and Felix is SUPER into it.) Sorry if it's bad. I'm still figuring out how to write stuff like that.

He was ripped into wakefulness by immense pain all over his body. He writhed and cried out, distantly aware that someone was worriedly calling his name, but he couldn’t respond. It took several agonizing moments before the pain faded and he blinked open his eyes to see his mate hovering over him with a soft smile.

“Welcome back,” she said in a soft tone, stoking the pleasant hum in his mind, “How are you feeling?” He grabbed his mate and rolled until he was on top of her, whining softly as he burrowed into her neck. His mate waved her hand, and there was suddenly light in the room. He could see his beautiful mate below him, and he whined softly in greeting as he nuzzled her ear. “Felix,” she breathed as she tilted her head back, exposing her throat for him. He licked along her throat, trying to taste that smell that made him so weak for her. His mate’s voice was high and breathy as she said, “Alright, so not all the way back yet.”

He shifted on top of her, trying to feel as much of her underneath him as he could, when his mate yelped like she was in pain. He whimpered, scrambling until he knelt above her as she winced. He scanned his mate worriedly. When had she been injured? Why wasn’t he there to keep her safe? Would she reject him because he had failed her?

His eyes fell on white cloth strapped around her shoulder. He leaned down, nuzzling against it as he whimpered, licking where her skin met the cloth. She gasped, arching her back as he moved her clothes, trying to see what happened to his mate while he was away. She grabbed his wrist, her voice becoming stern as she said, “Felix… I’m alright, but you need to stop.”

Stop what? Did she not want him anymore? He whined high in his throat and nuzzled against her nose. She sighed, but she didn’t sound pleased with him. Why wasn’t she pleased? He wanted to please her. He wanted her to be his, and she wouldn’t be his if she wasn’t pleased. He moved away, and whimpered as he bowed his head.

“Hey,” she softly cooed as she came to kneel beside him, “it’s alright. You’ll be back to yourself in a few minutes, and then we’ll talk.” She reached up and scratched behind his ear, and his heart leapt. She wasn’t angry with him. She might still want him! He ran his fingers through her hair, moving her head until he could nibble at her throat. She whined for him and there was a thump as his tail hit the bed. She was whining for him!

“Felix,” her voice was high and breathy again, he loved it when it sounded like that, “this isn’t…” he licked along her ear, growling low in his throat. He wanted to be a good mate. He would show her that he would be the best mate for her. 

He breathed, “I’ll be good for you.” He nibbled her throat, wanting to hear her whine again.

“Felix?” She stopped him by putting her hands on his shoulders. Her touch made him feel fuzzy, and he wanted to do it more. He liked when her skin touched his skin. Could he find more skin? He pulled at her clothes where they hung loose on her body, but he couldn’t find skin. He pulled a layer off, but only found more clothes. His mate touched his cheek, and her pretty green eyes stared into his. She said in that soft voice, “Felix? Can you talk to me?”

“More,” he whined, as he pulled at her clothes, “more skin.”

She put her other hand on his other cheek, and all of his vision was filled with her. He took a deep breath, loving the way her smell made his head feel. “In a few minutes, if you want more skin you can have it. We have to wait a few minutes longer until you are all better.”

“Better?” He whimpered as his heart sank. “I’m not good?”

“You’re so good,” he whined happily as he pulled her close, burying his nose in her smell, “but you haven’t come all the way back to me yet.”

He moved his head, trying to nuzzle his nose against hers, but pain flared in his back. He cried out, falling forward as he whimpered. It felt like his back was on fire, the pain making his breath come in quick pants. He fumbled blindly, trying to find his mate. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her against him as he tried to fight off the pain.

“You’re going to be okay. It’s just the spell.” His mate… mate? 

_Is that Byleth?_

“Ah!” He gritted his teeth as he fell forward and clutched at the blanket beneath him. “What the hell is happening?!” 

“Felix?” Byleth’s voice was nearby, but he had his eyes clenched shut as he tried to breathe through the pain. “It’s just the spell. You’ll be okay soon. It’s going to be alright. Try to breathe.”

He roared, “I’m going to KILL CONSTANCE!”

Her laughter bubbled through the air and he lifted his head to look at her quizzically, the pain in his back finally easing to something more manageable. He quickly realized they were on a bed, and when he lifted his head, panic shot through him. “Are we in your room?! What the hell happened?!”

“Welcome back,” Byleth softly said, a small smile on her face, “How are you feeling?”

“Back? What the hell is that supposed to mean?” He scrambled away from her, only to look down and realize— “Why in the fuck am I naked?!” He pulled a blanket from the foot of her bed, knocking her backwards with the force of his pull, and wrapped it around his body as heat flooded his cheeks.

She moved to sit on the edge of the bed and put her hands up in a placating gesture, hushing him softly, “It’s late. Try not to yell.”

“Try not to yell?!” He huffed a heavy breath out of his nose and then in a slightly quieter voice said, “Do you want to tell me what’s going on? NOW?”

She sighed heavily and flopped back on the bed as she grumbled, “Figures,” under her breath. She stared up at the ceiling of her room as she asked, “What is the last thing you remember?”

“Umm… Constance tried out her spell. I beat you in a spar,” she rolled her eyes at his cheeky tone, “then I took a bath and went to dinner with Sylvain. You showed up, then I went to bed…” He paused for a moment, furrowing his eyebrows as he tried to remember what happened next. Byleth stood up and walked toward him, but he stepped back nervously, still very aware that he was naked under her blanket.

The closer she got, the more his brain seemed to pleasantly hum, making it harder to remember what happened. “I… wasn’t tired,” he stammered as her green eyes seemed to pin him in place, “so I went on a walk.” His eyes widened in realization, and he flushed further as he murmured, “I slept by your door.” Byleth nodded slowly, her eyes never leaving his. “I…” he reached up to the top of his head and grumbled, “still have ears.”

“They should go away soon,” Byleth assured him. She took another step closer, only to reach up and scratch behind one of the furry ears on top of his head. Her heavenly smelled washed over him, and it took every ounce of willpower he had not to bury his face in her neck. A small whine pulled from his throat, and he flushed further, turning his face away from her as he clutched the blanket around himself. She asked, “Do you remember anything else?”

“We walked down to Abyss…” he frowned slightly, turning back to look at her as he struggled to remember. “Did I… have a tail?” He reached around to his back, but didn’t find anything. 

She chuckled softly, a sound he would never tire of hearing, and said, “You did, but it’s already gone. Constance, Lysithea, and Manuela worked together to reverse engineer the spell. It’s working backwards this time, so you should be back to normal soon.” He thought he saw sadness flash over her features, but it vanished quickly so he might have imagined it.

“I don’t…” he shook his head softly as he tried to concentrate, “I don’t remember anything else.”

“Well…” she drew out the word as she stepped even closer, so close that he could feel the heat of her through the blanket, “after you grew a tail, you started acting weird.”

“Weird?” His voice squeaked slightly and he turned his face away. He tried to take a step back, but ran into her desk.

She hummed softly, and the sound was oddly soothing. “Yes, weird. You became really touchy, and you kept doing this…” He turned back toward her, curious of what she was going to do, only to whine again as she nuzzled her nose against the sensitive skin over his pulse point.

“I…” he swallowed heavily, wondering if it was the embarrassment or her proximate that was making him feel hot all over. “I’m sorry.”

She clicked her tongue as she shook her head. “That’s not even the worst of it.”

He nervously stammered, “It’s… not?” 

Her eyes held a wicked gleam as her smile became sharp as her blade. She leaned closer and practically purred, “It’s not. After you did that, you…” she pressed her body up against his and he tensed, throwing his head back to look at the ceiling as heat flooded his cheeks. “And then you…” 

He moaned low in his throat as she licked up the side of his neck. His breath was now coming in quick pants as he looked anywhere but at her face. He knew she was mocking him and the things he did while he was affected by that stupid spell, but he was rapidly getting harder under the blanket and the look in her eyes was not helping. He stammered, “Was… that all I did?”

“No,” she whispered against his skin. The wetness left by her tongue made his skin even more sensitive to the warmth of her breath as it danced over it. She reached her hands up, and he hazily wondered if she might scratch his ears again. “Then… you did this.” He was wrong. She lightly pulled his hair, forcing him to look up as she nibbled at his exposed throat. He bit his tongue so hard it bled in an effort to not make any embarrassing sounds. 

She let his hair go and stepped away from him, and he had to bite back a whine as he immediately missed her warmth. He dropped his head to look down at her, and immediately became concerned as he realized she was wearing a gown from the infirmary. White bandages poked out where her gown was askew. How had he not noticed before? Panic flared in his chest, and his voice wavered as he asked, “Did… Did I hurt you?” He reached out a hand to rub along the bandage, but flinched back when he realized she probably wouldn’t want that.

“No,” she assured him with a shake of her head, some emotion in her voice he couldn’t pinpoint, “we were attacked, and you defended me.”

“Attacked?” He reflexively scanned his surroundings, even though they were in her room with a door between them and any danger, “By whom?”

“Assassins.” She wrapped her arms around herself as she stepped back to sit on her bed.

“Assassins got into the monastery?” His voice betrayed his panic, but he was too worried about her to mind. When had this happened? Why didn’t he remember it? Would more come and try to hurt her? Had anyone else been hurt? 

“No,” she shook her head slowly as she looked down at the floor, “we were out in the woods just outside the monastery when they attacked me.” Why wasn’t she looking at him? Why was she being so closed off right now? The switch in the mood was throwing him for a loop, and he was still frustratingly half hard and naked under this stupid blanket!

His voice had a frantic edge to it as he asked, “Why were we out in the woods? I don’t understand. Why don’t I remember any of this?” 

She took a deep breath in through her nose and finally raised her head to look at him. Something about her eyes made her look sad, though the rest of her features were as impassive as ever. “Because,” she softly explained, “you’ve been a giant wolf for the last two days.”

He stared at her blankly for several moments as his brain seemed to completely shut down. She was watching him warily, as her lower lip was being slightly tugged between her teeth. His eyes fixated on it as he tried to process what she just said. “A… wolf?”

“Yes,” her tone shifted back to its normal neutrality as she straightened and pulled on a robe, covering herself further. He had the odd feeling like she was pulling away from him, but he couldn’t quite understand why. He also couldn’t understand why it made his chest ache.

“You fell to the floor convulsing a few minutes after we got down to Abyss. A few moments later, you had transformed into a giant wolf. I made sure you were safe and ensured that you didn’t attack anyone. You are naked because you ripped through your clothes when you shifted the first time.” She looked at him for the first time since droning all of this information to him, and her tone became reminiscent of when she used to give them lectures during his Academy days as she asked, “Any more questions?”

He was at a loss for words. He struggled to think of a question to ask, mostly because he felt like she was acting strange and he didn’t know why. He hesitantly asked, “Why am I here?” He could’ve sworn she flinched when he said it.

“You were only comfortable around me,” she explained in that damned neutral tone of hers, “so I kept you secluded in my room during the day. I took you out into the woods because you were getting anxious being indoors, and then we were attacked. The knights on patrol found me passed out from poison, which the assassins had laced their arrowheads with. You watched over me while I was in the infirmary, and then after Constance cast the reversal spell, we came back here to wait it out.” She turned away from him and added, “You can take the blanket with you to your room. I’ll get it back tomorrow.”

He incredulously asked, “That’s it?” 

She still didn’t look at him as she said, “Did you have another question, Fraldarius?”

He brusquely asked, “Why aren’t you looking at me?”

“I’m respecting your privacy,” she evenly answered, “I wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“Make me uncomfortable?” He chuckled mirthlessly and snapped, “You were licking me two seconds ago.”

“I’m sorry,” she bowed her head as the slightest bit of sorrow leaked into her tone, “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

He walked up behind her, reached a hand out from beneath the blanket, and turned her around to look at him. She tried to avoid his gaze, turning her face to the side instead of up to him. He fixed that by lightly pinching her chin between his thumb and pointer finger and raising it. “That didn’t upset me. You being upset right not is upsetting me.”

“I’m not upset,” she denied it with a slight shake of her head, restricted by the fact that he still held her chin.

“You’re lying. I can see it in your eyes. Tell me what’s—” Pain flared at his temples and he stumbled backward. “Ah!” He moved his hands to clutch his head, the blanket falling loose around him as he fell to his knees.

“It’s going to be okay,” Byleth’s tone was soft and reassuring, “it’s just the spell. It’s all going to be alright.” She rubbed his back soothingly as she knelt down in front of where he was clutching at his head. Tears gathered at the corners of his eyes. This time was so much worse than the last one. He fell forward into her, and she quickly wrapped her arms around his waist. He buried his head in her neck, gritting his teeth in an effort not to cry out. “You’re doing so well,” she cooed, “It’ll be over soon and you’ll be back to normal.”

 _“You’re so good, but you haven’t come all the way back to me yet.”_ The words echoed in his mind as the pain began to ease. He pulled back slightly to look at her, and saw that her eyes were glistening like she might start to cry. He hesitantly reached out his hand to cup her cheek, and she leaned into the touch as she shut her eyes. He whispered, “Please, tell me why you’re sad.”

“It’s nothing,” she tried to shake her head but couldn’t when he cupped the other side of her face, “I’m happy you’re back to normal.” There was an odd emphasis when she said the word happy, like she was trying to convince herself as well as him.

“You wanted me to come back to you,” he slowly asked, “didn’t you?”

She took a sharp breath in as her eyes flew open, immediately zeroing in on his face right in front of hers. Her voice wavered as she said, “I didn’t think you would remember that.”

“It’s… fuzzy…” he frowned slightly as he tried to think. “Why are you sad?” On something that felt like instinct, he leaned forward until he could brush his nose against hers. She went rigid and he moved to take his hands away, scared he’d made her uncomfortable.

She tightened her grip around his waist, and he realized he was pressed up against her. She suddenly whispered, “How do you feel… about me?” Heat flooded his cheeks, and he tried to turn away, but one of her hands left his waist to cup his jaw. “I need to know if I’m…” she trailed off as she shut her eyes with a heavy sigh. 

He breathed out, “If you’re…?” 

“If I’m crazy.” She opened her eyes, and he inhaled sharply as he took in the amount of tenderness in her gaze. “I need to know if I’m alone in… whatever this is.”

He stammered, “Whatever… what is?”

The tenderness in her gaze transformed into something else as he stared. A shiver went down his spine as he realized that it looked like hunger. She growled, “Fuck it…” and surged forward to capture his lips in a heady kiss. He moaned into the kiss and she shuffled closer, pulling him flush against her. He was so lost in the sensation that he froze, but once he regained use of his limbs, he wrapped one arm around her waist and buried the other in the hair at the back of her head.

She groaned in approval and pushed him back onto the floor before quickly moving to straddle him. He hissed as she unintentionally rubbed against his length, and he became painfully aware that he was naked, the blanket having fallen to the floor ages ago. He pulled his head back and stammered, “Are we… should we… I am…”

She cocked her head to the side, her eyes ablaze with ravenous desire, and growled, “Are you going to leave me wanting, Felix Hugo Fraldarius?” The edge in her tone sent a chill down his spine, and his core flooded with heated want.

“Never,” he breathed, and she immediately pulled him back into a kiss. Her tongue slid against his bottom lip and he gasped, moaning as her tongue immediately began exploring his mouth. He followed her lead almost desperately, his hands rubbing over every bit of her as if they couldn’t decide where they wanted to touch the most.

*******

She grabbed one of his hands, moving it to her breast that was covered by the thin infirmary gown. She moaned into their kiss as he lightly squeezed, and his cock twitched beneath her. She grounded her hips against him, and the dampness of her smallclothes against his cock sent a fire through his veins. She pulled his hair and he arched his back, lifting his chin and unintentionally baring his throat. She bit down on the tender flesh and he keened, the mixture of pleasure and pain making his mind hazy with want.

She growled in his ear, “You’ve kept me waiting, Felix.” Another swivel of her hips had him crying out until she threw a hand over his mouth. She licked up his neck and purred in his ear, “Now… Are you going to be good for me?” His cock twitched beneath her, fully hard now. He nodded frantically, his eyes rolling back in his head as she twisted one of his pebbled nipples between her fingers.

She leaned down to lick at the abused nipple, trailing her tongue up his chest, up his throat, and all the way to his ear as he writhed beneath her.

“You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to wreck you,” she purred in his ear with another grind of her hips, “How long I’ve wanted to make you beg for me.” She bit the flesh of his ear, pulling it between her teeth until he groaned into her hand. “Would you beg for me, Felix? Beg until I make you my beautiful little mess?” 

A distant voice in the back of his mind called for him to take control, to fight back. The rest of his brain screamed for him to beg, cry, sing, ANYTHING if it would please her. “I like you like this,” she practically sang as she sat up straight and pulled the infirmary gown over her head, presenting him with the erotic sight of her laid bare before him save the bandage around her shoulder and the smallclothes at her hips. “I like you red faced and desperate. You’re so pretty like this.” He whined and threw his head back, the praise and the twist of his already abused nipple providing the perfect dose of pleasure and pain.

“I warned you that you would be in for it when you turned back. This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind,” she pulled him into a kiss which he desperately returned as he wrapped his hands in her hair, “but I think you like this.”

“Please,” the word was punched from his throat as she pulled back to nibble along his collarbone.

She growled low in his ear, “You have to use your words, Fraldarius.”

Words spilled from his mouth as he babbled, “Want you… feel you… need you… please!” 

“Maybe if you’re good for me,” she purred, and the emphasis on good made his hips buck, “I’ll be your mate. I might even let you keep me away from all the others that would have me for themselves.” He whined high in his throat, some hazy part of his brain fixating on the word mate and flooding him with heat. “Would you like that? Would you like to be mine? Mine to protect. Mine to wreck whenever I please?” 

He surged forward, desperately pulling her mouth to his for a sloppy kiss, before he made his way down, licking and sucking at any bit of flesh he could get his mouth on. She leaned back and he took one of her nipples in his mouth, making her throw her head back with a whiny gasp that made his head spin.

She pushed his shoulders back down to the ground as she lifted her hips and slid her smallclothes down. The sight of her glistening sex and the sharp grin on her face were enough to make him moan. She fumbled slightly until she flung the smallclothes across the room and stood on her knees as she finally took his hard length in her hands. Goddess he’d never seen anything more beautiful. Was this some sort of dream? Some effect of the spell that was making him feel like he was living out something that he couldn’t even come up with in his wildest fantasies?

She sunk down on his length and threw her head back with a high-pitched breathy moan. His brain was no longer working, apparently his limbs weren’t either. He stared up at her, utterly transfixed, until she dropped her head to look down at him, heat and desire written all over her face. “Now, fuck me,” she ordered, using the same tone she would use on the battlefield, and he regained use of his limbs in time to follow her command. 

She raised herself slightly, and as she sank down, he bucked his hips to meet hers. Her eyes became hooded and hazy with each thrust, but it wasn’t enough for him. He lifted her enough to throw her down on her back. She growled in protest to the repositioning, but it turned into a moan as he thrust deeply into her. She threw her hand over her mouth in an effort to silence her cry, but even muffled it filled him with a sense of pride and an overwhelming desire to hear it again. 

He moved his lips over hers, and they swallowed each other’s moans and sighs until he felt the pressure in his stomach coil to the point that he might explode. He grunted, “I’m gonna…”

“So... close...” she groaned, her nails dragging across his back in a way that was not helping him hold on. He took one of her nipples in his mouth, biting down softly before laving it with his tongue. She arched her back, a groan of approval echoing through her. He reached two fingers down to find her swollen clit, trying to match the pace he was setting with his thrusts but becoming more and more out of rhythm the closer he came to the edge.

Finally, she pulsed with her orgasm, locking her legs around his hips as she clamped down on his length. Her weak whimper of his name was more than enough to send him over the edge, thrusting weakly into her core until his vision filled with white light and he dropped down beside her, panting for breath. He stared up at the ceiling, blinking the stars from his eyes, and pulled her to his chest.

******

“Holy saints,” he panted out, his chest rising and falling with each attempt to fill his lungs. “What the fuck was that?”

She chuckled breathily and turned her head to press soft kisses to his chest. “Have you not done that before?”

He wasn’t a blushing virgin, but that was… “Not like THAT,” he insisted, raising a hand to brush his damp bangs from his forehead. 

She sighed softly and sat up, rolling away from him. He had never considered himself a cuddler, but all he wanted right now was her pressed to his side. He grabbed her hand and pulled lightly, but when she turned to face him, that sad gleam was back in her eyes. His heart fell like a stone to his stomach, and he rolled up with shaky limbs to pull her into an embrace.

He asked, “What’s wrong?” She weakly tried to push him off, but he held fast.

“Lysithea had a theory,” she whispered softly as she gave in and returned his embrace, “that you were acting the way you were because you were trying to…” she trailed off, pushing off of him harder this time, and he reluctantly let go so she could move away. 

He watched her move over to a washbasin in the corner and wet a rag, before gliding it up the inside of her thighs were some of his seed dripped from her core. He flushed as he turned away, cursing the fact that his cock twitched at the sight. At the sound of soft footsteps, he looked up to see her handing him a different damp towel to clean himself. 

She continued, “She thought that because you were hostile toward other males and very submissive and affectionate with me… that you might… think you were…” she shook her head sharply, her face filling with hardened resolve, “She thought you were trying to secure me as your mate.”

He flushed deeper and turned his face away, cursing what was probably an embarrassing blush on his face and chest. “If you just wanted to fuck,” she continued in a neutral tone, “there you go. We can even make it a casual, regular thing if you’d like. But I…” 

He risked a glance at her, and the air practically fled from his lungs at the look of affection in her eyes as she knelt back down in front of him. He’d never seen anything like it, and he wondered how it could possibly be aimed at him of all people. “Over the last two days,” she swallowed heavily as her eyes became misty, “I’ve been so worried. I didn’t know what I would do if you were stuck like that.”

He shuffled closer to her, overwhelmed by his desire to comfort her. “I’m fine,” he murmured in her ear, “I’m here.”

“It was all my fault,” her voice cracked with emotion, more than he had heard from her since the death of her father, “I shouldn’t have let Constance cast it on you. It should have been me, or I should have stopped it.”

“Hey,” he whispered as he shook his head, holding her tightly, “it wasn’t your fault.”

“I just…” she trailed off with a faint sniffle.

“What?” He pulled back and brushed the hair from her face, trying to see her eyes. Trying in vain to understand what she was trying to say.

“I think I might…” she trailed off again as a beautiful blush spread across her cheeks. He marveled at it, staring in wonder at a blushing Ashen Demon, with the face of a goddess and the strength and fighting prowess necessary to lead an entire army.

“After the last two days,” she said firmly as she clenched her hands into fists at her sides, “I think I might think of you as more than the guy I want to fuck...” She bowed her head, the resolve slipping from her features. She then murmured, “If that makes sense...”

He stared at the mint green curtain of hair in front of him with wide eyes, his brain trying to process what she said, but reeling at what it could possibly mean. There was no way that she could… would she really? For him? 

“That’s… I…” words felt clumsy on his tongue as he tried to think of what to say. “You… what?”

She looked up at him with the barest hint of a smile. She lightly teased, “Don’t tell me I’ve dulled your sharp tongue.”

That sharp tongue surged forward as he pulled her into a rough kiss. He tangled his hands in her mint green hair and tried to press everything he felt but couldn’t seem to form words for into the kiss. They pulled back for air, and he moved to rub his nose against hers. “I want to be yours, and I want you to be mine.” It was a simple enough phrase, but it conveyed what he wanted. Sure… he wanted to fuck. Any and every time he possibly could. But he didn’t want that to be all they had between them. If there was any possibility that she could hold affection for him, he would work tirelessly to keep it.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead and murmured against her skin, “If you’d have me, I’d stay by your side until the day we die.” 

He yelped as she bit his shoulder, his skin still overly sensitive from her earlier actions. She sharply reprimanded, “You don’t get to die. You’re mine, and I protect what’s mine.” She quickly moved her hands up his body, and wrapped her arms around his neck in an embrace. Her voice became softer, more vulnerable, as she whispered, “You don’t get to die.”

He chuckled softly, almost overwhelmed by his affection for the woman in his arms, and leaned his head against hers. “I wasn’t saying I was going to any time soon. I was talking about after we turn old and grey, idiot.”

There was an awkward silence between them for a moment. “That reminds me,” she said as she unwrapped her arms and walked back toward the bed.

He interrupted by asking, “What the hell happened to your bed?”

“You broke it,” she grumbled, “AND wrecked my door.” He swiveled his head and gaped at the claw marks and splintering on the inside of her door.

He spoke in an awed whisper, “What the hell?”

“Sylvain came by,” she spoke through a chuckle, “I think you thought he was trying to steal me.”

He scrambled to his feet and took long strides toward the bed, pushing her back with a deep kiss as he hovered over her. He growled in her ear, “I’d like to see the idiot fucking try.” 

She wrapped her legs around his hips, pecking sweet kisses up his neck. She purred, “Please don’t kill Sylvain. He may be a flirt, but he can actually handle a lance. He’s pretty smart, too. He’s--”

He dragged his teeth over her pulse point, making her sigh softly, and growled, “Not helping.”

“Right,” she said in a hazy voice, “I was trying to tell you something.” 

He nibbled at the flesh of her ear, soothing the flesh with his tongue soon after and murmured, “What were you trying to tell me?”

“Ummm…” she sighed as he rubbed his thumb over one of her nipples, “I can’t… think when you’re…”

“Don’t tell me it’s that easy to make you yield,” he playfully chided.

“Says the man I just had begging on the floor,” she panted with a breathy chuckle. He flushed and buried his head in the crook of her neck. She ran a hand through his hair soothingly before stating, “Your father knows.”

His head shot up to look at her, and once their eyes met, he grumbled, “Knows what?”

“That you were a wolf,” she chuckled as he dropped his head to her chest, “I tried to keep it a secret, figuring you wouldn’t want people to know, but he came by and you howled for him… soo…”

He groaned, “Howled? Seriously?”

“After that I had to open the door because he freaked out, probably thinking I was being attacked or something. You pulled me to the floor and proceeded to lay on top of me as you licked my face.” He groaned in embarrassment and attempted to further hide his face. “He thinks we’re courting. I tried to deny it, telling him I couldn’t because I was your teacher…” she trailed off as he tried to pull away, a sinking feeling in his chest. 

She grabbed both sides of his face, pulling him closer until his vision was filled with brilliant green eyes, and whispered, “But he told me I shouldn’t say things like that or I might break your heart,” she pressed a kiss so tender to his lips that his heart ached with it, “and I wouldn’t want to do that.”

He pulled her close again, and they dissolved into deep and meaningful kissing. It felt so different from what they had done just minutes ago, and it filled him with so much contentment he thought he just might explode with it. 

When they stopped a few minutes later he nuzzled his nose against hers and nervously asked, “Does that mean you would…? Court me? Maybe one day… you know… maybe…”

She frowned slightly, and relaxed back against the bed. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Felix. Things that could change however you feel about me.”

“No,” he insisted with a rough kiss, “You couldn’t tell me anything that would change how I feel.”

“We don’t even know if this is an effect of the spell, Fe,” he thrilled at the nickname even though he wasn’t particularly fond of what she was saying, “You were acting strange before you got the ears. Maybe it’s—”

“I wanted you long before that stupid spell,” he interrupted sharply, “so don’t try to use that as an excuse. If you don’t want me, just say it.” He moved to standing and walked over to grab the blanket from the floor, determined to flee if she was going to continue attempting to feed him excuses why she didn’t wish to be his intended.

She ran around him, and held up her hands to stop him. “That’s not what I…” she shook her head with a groan of frustration and put her hands over her face. She said something, but it was muffled by her hands. 

He walked toward her and pulled her hands away from her face. He snapped, “Just tell me, damn it.”

“There’s so much,” she practically pleaded, “so much you don’t know, so much I don’t even really know.”

“What are you even talking about?” He shook his head as he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

“There are things I haven’t told you, haven’t told the Lions, because I don’t completely understand it myself.” She bowed her head with a heavy sigh. “I’m just… I don’t want to…”

He wrapped the blanket around the two of them as he pulled her into an embrace. He kissed her deeply and murmured, “I love you. Stop worrying.”

She squeaked, “Love?” The Ashen Demon squeaked like a school girl. He didn’t think he’d ever get used to that.

“I’m not saying it again,” he grumbled, not liking the vulnerability he was feeling, “I just want you to stop worrying. It's not worth your distress. I don't know what you feel like you need to tell me, but you don't have to do it now. I'll be here by your side while I wait.”

“What if I… don’t have a heart? What if I can’t—”

“Don’t be stupid,” he snapped. She frowned and bowed her head again, causing him to pause. “Wait… you’re being serious?” She shied away from him, but he pulled her back as he bent down to put his head over her chest. He listened in vain for the sound of her heart beating. “Holy shit…”

She pulled away as her whole body tensed. “See? There’s things you don’t—”

He pushed her up against the door and shut her up with a kiss, swallowing her soft moan as he pressed himself against her. “I’ve known you weren’t a normal person since the day you cut a hole in the sky and told us you’d been blessed by the goddess,” he whispered in her ear, followed by a kiss on the skin just below it, “And I mourned your death while you slept for five years. The fact that you aren’t ordinary has never stopped me from wanting you. If anything, it makes me want you more. So, you not having a heartbeat doesn’t stop it either.” 

He pulled back to look at her, overwhelming fondness rushing through him as he stared into her misty eyes. “It’s simple. Just tell me you want me,” he softly murmured, “and then I’m yours.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and walked him back toward the bed. He followed willingly, especially as she pressed a sweet kiss to his lips. She pushed him down on the bed and crawled over him, kissed him deeply once more and whispered, “I want you.”

And after that… nothing else mattered.

He woke the next morning with his naked limbs entangled with Byleth’s underneath the sheets. Last night’s events washed over him and he smiled as he brushed a kiss against her forehead. She sighed softly as she blinked open her eyes and then buried her face in his chest with a groan of, “Tired…”

They both became alert as a knock sounded at the door. Byleth stood up, gathering the spare blanket from the floor where they had left it and wrapped it around herself before she walked over and cracked the door open. She whispered a short conversation with someone and then he heard the sound of a familiar chuckle. He rolled his eyes as Byleth turned and said, “It’s for you.”

He grumbled, “Make him go away.” Byleth chuckled softly and shook her head. “Then close the damn door or cover yourself, woman. He doesn’t need to see you like that.” Her gaze sharpened as she began the unwrap the blanket, and he rushed out of bed to slam the door shut.

“Hey!” Sylvain’s voice whined loudly from the other side, “I came to give you clothes so you didn’t have to sneak around nude! I’m doing you a solid here, dude!” Byleth gave him a smug look and handed him the blanket, walking back to the bed with what he considered an exaggerated sway of her bare hips. She crawled under the blankets and nodded her head to the door before laying back down into the pillows.

He wrapped the blanket around himself, pulled the door open, and snapped, “What the hell do you want?”

Sylvain’s face betrayed his amusement as light brown eyes scanned him. He snickered and exclaimed, “Dude! You look like you’ve been attacked!” He made a show of sticking his head closer to the crack in the door before he shouted, “Good work, Professor! Who knew you had it in you?!” 

Felix punched him, hard, and growled, “Would you shut the fuck up?”

Sylvain’s eyes sparkled with his amusement as he teased, “It’s nice to see you back to normal, Fe,” Sylvain’s voice softened considerably as he added, “You had me worried there for a sec.” He knew that Byleth had been worried for him, he’d figured as much with how abnormally emotional she had been last night. He hadn’t stopped to consider the others, whether they knew and whether they were worried about him.

Sylvain pulled his hands out from behind his back to hand Felix a stack of his clothes. “I thought you might need these.”

“Thank you,” he begrudgingly grumbled as he took the stack.

“So,” a mischievous smirk curled Sylvain’s lips, “that good, huh? You woke me up, man! It must have been.”

His cheeks burned as he remembered that Sylvain’s room was the one above Byleth’s, and then he promptly shoved his insatiable friend away before slamming the door with a resounding thud. He could hear Sylvain’s laughter echo as he walked away.

Byleth looked at him from the bed, a smug grin on her face. He walked forward to drop the stack of clothes on the foot of the bed and miserably grumbled, “Well, the teasing isn’t going to stop anytime soon.” 

She sat up slightly, the sheets slipping down to pool at her hips, leaving him with the gorgeous sight of her breasts and toned stomach in the early morning light that spilled through the windows. She shook her hair so it spilled over her shoulders and raised an eyebrow as she purred, “Was it worth it?”

He meant to make his voice sharp, but failed miserably as he said, “Would you shut up?”

“Depends,” she said coyly as she raised an eyebrow, “are you going to stand there and gawk, or are you going to make me?”

He crawled over her as he grumbled, “Right… Because Sylvain needs more fodder for his mockery.”

“You’re right,” she hummed in fake disinterest, “we should probably go and let the others know that you’re okay anyway, shouldn’t we?” She chuckled softly as he kissed a trail up her neck, leaning her head back to give him better access.

“I’m taking what’s mine,” he whispered in her ear, “they’ll just have to wait.”

A smirk was his only warning before he was flipped onto his back with her pinning him down. “Oh,” she cooed, “that’s cute that you think you could take me.”

And if this is what life with her would be like… he could think of worse things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed! :) I needed to write something fun with Felix for a fun little distraction from my long haul fic with the trio (Sylvain, Felix, and Byleth) Check it out if you'd like.
> 
> As always... thanks for reading!


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